Demis Hassabis
CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind; 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Google DeepMind
Hassabis leads Google's AI lab and won a Nobel for AI that predicts protein structures. He believes human-level AI is roughly five to ten years away and could be ten times bigger than the Industrial Revolution. He does not give a doom number but says the risk is 'non-negligible', wants urgent safety research, and admits international cooperation looks 'very difficult'.
Declines to give a number
No numeric p(doom). Has described the risk of civilisation destroying itself as "definitely non-zero and probably non-negligible" and names two main risks: AI being "exploited by malicious users" and "humans eventually losing control of systems as they become more capable" (AI Impact Summit, Delhi, February 2026).Source
On timing
AGI "probably unfolding in a decade rather than a century"; predicted AGI could arrive within about five years of 2026, with impact "something like ten times the impact of the Industrial Revolution, but happening at ten times the speed" (India AI Impact Summit, February 2026). Earlier: AI matching humans at any task in 'five to 10 years' (March 2025).
SourceWhat they call for
- International cooperation on AI safety standards
- 'smart regulation' targeting real risks
- Urgent research into loss of control and misuse
- Strong safeguards on autonomous systems
In their own words
"But it has to be international. Otherwise you'll get nations competing." / "It seems to be very difficult for the world to do. Just look at climate."
14 February 2025
Research into AI threats needs "to be done urgently"; it is "crucial to put strong safeguards in place to protect against the gravest dangers posed by increasingly autonomous systems."
22 February 2026
"We've got to try and navigate this moment very carefully."
2026-02
Signed
- CAIS extinction statement 2023