Microsoft's Eric Horvitz says artificial intelligence will 'not' end human race

Microsoft head of research Eric Horvitz has said that though machines will eventually achieve a human-like consciousness, they do not pose a threat to the survival of mankind.

Horvitz said in an interview that there have been concerns about the long-term prospect that they lose control of certain kinds of intelligences, but he fundamentally doesn't think that's going to happen, Stuff.co.nz reported.

Horvitz added that he thinks that we will be very proactive in terms of how they field AI systems and that in the end they'll be able to get incredible benefits from machine intelligence in all realms of life, from science to education to economics to daily life.

In a later blog, Horvitz admitted the procession of AI towards super-intelligence would present challenges in realms of privacy, law and ethics, but concluded that AI doomsday scenarios belong more in the realm of science fiction than science fact.

Meanwhile technologist Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal and founder of SpaceX and Tesla Motors, has repeatedly expressed concerns about the development of AI, first likening it to the production of nuclear weapons and then claiming mankind was "summoning the demon" by pursuing the technology carelessly.

Even Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who has stepped back from the company to pursue philanthropic work with his Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, said that he is in the camp that is concerned about super intelligence.

Gates added that he agrees with Musk and some others on this and doesn't understand why some people are not concerned.

Horvitz explained that they have Cortana and Siri and Google Now setting up a competitive tournament for where's the best intelligent assistant going to come from and that kind of competition is going to heat up the research and investment, and bring it more into the spotlight.