The unintended consequences of progress, including the risks and possible harms caused, are always a factor that scientists and engineers consider in building any new technology. In today's age, the spotlight is on AI – but the range of possibilities that progress might bring is near unfathomable.

I am become death

Chris Nolan, director of a string of cinematic successes across the last three decades, was speaking on the subject matter of his 2023 blockbuster 'Oppenheimer' during a press tour.

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During a New York panel following a preview screening of the film, Nolan was speaking on the rise of AI, which has fallen into perspective after showing immense promise.

Although the mainstream image of AI has been coloured by a string of science-fiction movies throughout history, there are still valid questions to be asked about the unintended consequences of building and releasing new tools without an awful lot of testing.

Similar to the nature of the work that scientist J Robert Oppenheimer did on the Manhattan Project, there is a "dual-use dilemma" in the way that AI could either be used for good or to cause catastrophic harm.

Unintended consequences

Similar to fears expressed during that period of history, scientists and researchers frequently warn about ways in which AI can either be misaligned or spiral out of control, or ways in which people can exploit it for malicious intent.

A study published in May 2024, for example, highlights the possible risks of a future AI that could deceive humans. It uses documented examples as a springboard to speculate that a future system may decide to mislead humanity for purposes that differ from the humans that built and use it.

There are also flaws with these parallels, namely, unlike nuclear weapons, AI development spans thousands of organizations around the world. There's also a dominance in the private sector, a much lower barrier to entry, and more difficulties in verifying and inspecting whether AI is being used in positive or harmful ways.

Keumars Afifi-Sabet is a freelance contributor for Tech Radar and the Technology Editor for Live Science. He has written for a variety of publications including ITPro, The Week Digital and ComputerActive. He has worked as a technology journalist for more than five years, having previously held the role of features editor with ITPro. In his previous role, he oversaw the commissioning and publishing of long form in areas including AI, cyber security, cloud computing and digital transformation.