New Delhi, June 22 -- The prospect of artificial general intelligence-systems capable of performing any human cognitive task-has inspired both hope and anxiety.

While artificial general intelligence could usher in an unprecedented increase in global living standards, it could also sharply reduce demand for human labour, fuelling unemployment, social unrest and conflict. Much of the AI debate in recent years has swung between these two extremes.

Strikingly, one of the most insightful analyses of the promise and peril of artificial general intelligence came from OpenAI chief executive officer Sam Altman. In a blog post originally published in 2023 and updated in 2025, Altman displayed a measure of philosophical scepticism uncommon among t...