Leaked documents show that OpenAI has a very clear definition of “AGI”

OpenAI and Microsoft have a secret definition of “AGI,” which is short for artificial general intelligence, or any system that can outperform humans at most tasks. According to the leaked documents he obtained InformationThe two companies agreed in 2023 that artificial general intelligence will be achieved once OpenAI develops an AI system that can generate profits of at least $100 billion.

There has been a long debate in the AI ​​community about what artificial general intelligence really means, or whether computers will ever be good enough to outperform humans at most tasks and wipe out large swaths of the economy.

The term “artificial intelligence” itself is a misnomer because much of it is really just a prediction machine, taking in keywords and looking through large amounts of data without really understanding the underlying concepts. But OpenAI has received more than $13 billion in funding from Microsoft over the years, and that money came with a strange contractual agreement whereby OpenAI would stop letting Microsoft use any new technology it developed after achieving AGI.

OpenAI was founded as a non-profit organization under the guise that it would use its influence, and any artificial general intelligence that is developed, to create products that benefit all of humanity. The idea behind cutting off Microsoft once it achieves AGI is that direct access to OpenAI’s intellectual property could lead to an unjustified concentration of power in the tech giant. In exchange for investing billions in a non-profit, Microsoft’s current agreement with OpenAI guarantees it a slice of the profits until it reaches a predetermined cap somewhere in the high tens of billions; The cap is intended to ensure that most of the profits eventually go back into building products that benefit all of humanity, supposedly. This is all fantasy, because AI, again, is not that powerful at this point.

OpenAI’s nonprofit structure has long been considered a farce, and it’s not surprising that this year the company announced its intention to shift to a for-profit structure (while maintaining its mission to benefit all of humanity, in one way or another), because the current nonprofit structure makes it difficult to raise more money and compete. Against other players in the field of artificial intelligence. Therefore, Information Microsoft and OpenAI are negotiating a set of changes to their arrangement that would apply if the company restructures, he says. Microsoft also currently serves as the exclusive cloud hosting provider for OpenAI, and OpenAI may want to end that as well as stop sharing profits and switch to giving Microsoft equity directly.

Microsoft and OpenAI have been on diverging paths for some time now. It was recently reported that the latter has begun Integrate internally developed AI models In its 365 Copilot product in order to improve cost and efficiency. It doesn’t make sense for Microsoft to continue to rely on OpenAI, an independent company, for technology that it believes will be the backbone of its productivity software in the future. Especially with everyone Chaos and drama That surrounded OpenAI. Microsoft needs its own technologies to chart its own course.

OpenAI, for its part, is a long way from making $100 billion in profits on technology whose true value remains speculative, meaning it will likely have to keep giving its technology to Microsoft for a long time — which isn’t great when it looks like they’re on their way Forward towards being competitive. Handing over large sums of its revenue also makes it less attractive to new investors, which it will need It continues to burn money. Eliminating the cloud hosting agreement may also allow OpenAI to negotiate better hosting costs with an alternative provider.