Pioneers of AI win Nobel Prize in physics for laying the groundwork of machine learning.

Fox News. October 8, 2024.

John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their foundational work in artificial intelligence.

Hinton, known as the godfather of AI, is a dual citizen of Canada and Britain, and Hopfield is an American working at Princeton University.

Hopfield and Hinton laid the groundwork for the machine learning revolution, according to Mark Pearce, a member of the Nobel physics committee.

Two pioneers of artificial intelligence — John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton — won the Nobel Prize in physics Tuesday for helping create the building blocks of machine learning that is revolutionizing the way we work and live but also creates new threats for humanity.

Hinton, who is known as the godfather of artificial intelligence, is a citizen of Canada and Britain who works at the University of Toronto, and Hopfield is an American working at Princeton.

“These two gentlemen were really the pioneers,” said Nobel physics committee member Mark Pearce. “They … did the fundamental work, based on physical understanding which has led to the revolution we see today in machine learning and artificial intelligence.”

The artificial neural networks — interconnected computer nodes inspired by neurons in the human brain — the researchers pioneered are used throughout science and medicine and “have also become part of our daily lives, for instance in facial recognition and language translation,” said Ellen Moons, a member of the Nobel committee at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Hopfield, whose 1982 work laid the groundwork for Hinton’s, told The Associated Press Tuesday, “I continue to be amazed by the impact it has had.”

Hinton predicted that AI will end up having a “huge influence” on civilization, bringing improvements in productivity and health care.

“It would be comparable with the Industrial Revolution,” he said in an open call with reporters and officials of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

“Instead of exceeding people in physical strength, it’s going to exceed people in intellectual ability. We have no experience of what it’s like to have things smarter than us. And it’s going to be wonderful in many respects,” Hinton said.

“But we also have to worry about a number of possible bad consequences, particularly the threat of these things getting out of control.”

Warning of AI risks

The Nobel committee also mentioned fears about the possible flipside.

Moons said that while it has “enormous benefits, its rapid development has also raised concerns about our future. Collectively, humans carry the responsibility for using this new technology in a safe and ethical way for the greatest benefit of humankind.”

Hinton shares those concerns. He quit a role at Google so he could speak more freely about the dangers of the technology he helped create.

“I am worried that the overall consequence of this might be systems more intelligent than us that eventually take control,” Hinton said.

For his part, Hopfield, who signed early petitions by researchers calling for strong control of the technology, compared the risks and benefits of machine learning to work on viruses and nuclear energy, capable of helping and harming society.

Neither winner was home to get the call

Neither winner was home when they received the news. Hopfield, who was staying with his wife at a cottage in Hampshire, England, said that after grabbing coffee and getting his flu shot, he opened his computer to a flurry of activity.

“I’ve never seen that many emails in my life,” he said. A bottle of champagne and bowl of soup were waiting on his desk for him, he added, but he doubted there were any fellow physicists in town to join the celebration.

Hinton said he was shocked at the honor.

“I’m flabbergasted. I had no idea this would happen,” he said when reached by the Nobel committee on the phone. He said he was at a cheap hotel with no internet.

Episode 3005 - October 10 - Tiếng Anh - Những người tiên phong của AI giành giải Nobel vật lý - Vina Technology at AI time

Vina Technology at AI time - Công nghệ Việt Nam thời AI

Episode 3005 - October 10 - Tiếng Anh - Những người tiên phong của AI giành giải Nobel vật lý - Vina Technology at AI time