Use AI to keep jobs, boost healthcare, curb climate change to maximise good: President Tharman
SINGAPORE - Artificial intelligence (AI) can enable displaced workers to find new meaningful jobs in other sectors and not resort to 'flipping burgers' after their previous jobs are disrupted by rapid technological developments, said President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
Speaking at the opening gala for Singapore's 5th annual tech conference Asia Tech x Singapore on May 27, Mr Tharman noted the need for systematic training involving governments and the industry to level up displaced workers' skills.
'If there are some people displaced in one sector because of creative disruption, how do they get deployed, not just into flipping burgers, but into new jobs in other sectors,' said Mr Tharman, urging the audience to think about productivity more broadly.
'It's productivity for the workforce at large... to maximise our potential to create good jobs for everyone who wishes to be in the workforce,' he said.
Speaking at the Fullerton Bay Hotel, Mr Tharman said that AI is driving productivity in factories, call centres and banks, but the progress is not necessarily translating into more jobs that ensure the workforce is productive, such as to create new jobs.
Productivity for human society is one of three areas he cited where global consensus can be attained to maximize the good of AI, and minimise the risk of AI harms.
In his half-hour speech to policymakers, tech leaders and industry guests, Mr Tharman said the other two areas are in healthcare and climate change. Specifically, AI can aid in early disease detection and easing pressures on healthcare systems. AI also has the potential to improve energy efficiency to curb climate change.
Organised by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), the conference is expected to host 3,500 attendees from around the world who will attend panels and discussions on AI governance and innovation in the technology sector between May 27 to 29. Executives from major tech companies like OpenAI, Microsoft and Google are also scheduled to attend panel discussions that address pressing issues in tech.
Mr Tharman highlighted opportunities where AI can improve healthcare, such as to spot and treat diseases and support healthcare systems.
He said: 'We need to take it much, much further and ensure that safety is ensured through regulation of AI in healthcare.'
Tougher regulation is necessary to bring AI's impact on the healthcare sector further, so that trust in healthcare systems is preserved, said Mr Tharman, citing Singapore's efforts to introduce guidelines in healthcare for developers and users. For instance, developers are obliged to gather feedback from clinicians and patients on their apps, to build confidence in using such systems.
Humanity's fight against climate change, too, stands to gain from AI innovation, even as intensifying AI use requires high amounts of water and energy to support its computing.
Yet, AI is key to monitoring the levels of environmental degradation and to improve energy efficiency across the economy, such as to enable more productive food systems so that resources in forests are not depleted unsustainably, said Mr Tharman.
In spite of the advantages that AI can bring, there are risks that society must come together to address.
Mr Tharman said that among the risks is the use of AI-generated content, together with social media platforms and rogue actors, to spread disinformation that can erode trust in democracy.
Mr Tharman said: 'They are forcing people into bubbles and hardening divisions within society… We do not yet have a solution to this but it is a dangerous problem .'
He also warned that AI risks transforming warfare for the worst - an urgent issue that the United States and China, in particular, must discuss to find ways to control the use of AI in war.
To achieve these objectives, industries must start to act sectorally to use AI to address issues within each field, such as to address the needs and spur innovation within agriculture, healthcare and climate change, Mr Tharman said.
He suggested developing multilateral governments and coalitions among policymakers, scientists, tech players and civil society who can iron out guidelines and common standards for AI.
Momentum for coalitions in the tech industry is building, said Mr Tharman. Scientists and members of the global tech sector gathered here for the Singapore Conference on AI in April to discuss the priorities for global AI safety research, which Mr Tharman described as a good example of what it takes to work together.
Mr Tharman said: 'We need some form of calibration, of consensus-based guidance. Some way in which coalitions of the willing come together so that we can maximize the good and minimise the risk of the worst. We can't leave it to the jungle.'
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
4 hours ago
- CNA
Snowcap Compute raises $23 million for superconducting AI chips
SAN FRANCISCO :Snowcap Compute, a startup working on building artificial intelligence computing chips using superconducting technology, on Monday raised $23 million and said that the former CEO of Intel will join its board. Snowcap aims to build computers that could one day beat today's best artificial intelligence systems, while using a fraction of the electricity. To do that, Snowcap plans to use a new kind of chip made with superconductors, which are materials that allow current to flow without electrical resistance. Scientists understand superconductors well and have theorized about making computer chips with them since at least the 1990s, but have faced a major challenge: To work, the chips need to be kept very cold in cryogenic coolers which themselves consume a lot of electricity. For decades that made superconductor chips a nonstarter, until AI chatbots ignited huge demand for computing power at the same time that conventional chips are hitting the limits of how much performance they can wring from every watt of power and are taxing electricity grids. Nvidia's forthcoming "Rubin Ultra" AI data center server due in 2027, for example, is expected to consume about 600 kilowatts of power. That means operating that single server at full capacity for one hour would consume about two thirds the average power that a U.S. house uses in a month. In that kind of changed world, dedicating a portion of a data center's power needs to cryogenic coolers makes sense if the performance gains are good enough, said Michael Lafferty, Snowcap's CEO, who formerly oversaw work on futuristic chips at Cadence Design Systems. Snowcap believes that even after accounting for energy used in cooling, its chips will be about 25 times better than today's best chips in terms of performance per watt. "Power (efficiency) is nice, but performance sells," Lafferty said. "So we're pushing the performance level way up and pulling the power down at the same time." Snowcap's founding team includes two scientists - Anna Herr and Quentin Herr - who have done extensive work on superconducting chips at chip industry research firm Imed and defense firm Northrop Grumman, as well as former chip executives from Nvidia and Alphabet's Google. While the chips can be made in a standard factory, they will require an exotic metal called niobium titanium nitride that Lafferty said depends on Brazil and Canada for key ingredients. Snowcap plans its first basic chip by the end of 2026, but full systems will not come until later. Despite the long development timeline, Pat Gelsinger, Intel's former CEO who led the investment for venture firm Playground Global and is joining Snowcap's board, said the computing industry needs a sharp break from its current trajectory of consuming ever more electricity. "A lot of data centers today are just being limited by power availability," Gelsinger said.
CNA
6 hours ago
- CNA
Prosus surpasses annual financial targets with $7.4 billion annual earnings
Dutch technology investor Prosus on Monday reported full-year core headline earnings of $7.4 billion, up 47 per cent year-on-year and exceeding its financial targets, bolstered by its expansion in lifestyle e-commerce. The company said e-commerce revenue grew 21 per cent to $6.2 billion, fuelled by advances in artificial intelligence and innovation, as it continued to expand in Latin America, Europe, and India. Prosus, owned by South African technology investor Naspers, is pivoting from an investment group to a lifestyle tech company, a strategic shift that BofA highlighted in a note prior to the earnings publication as a key enabler that could boost financial yields and shift its investment case. "We are making good progress with the purchase of Just Eat which will create a new AI-powered tech champion in Europe," CEO Fabricio Bloisi said in a statement. Prosus announced in late February an agreement to buy Just Eat Takeaway for 4.1 billion euros ($4.72 billion) to create a European tech champion. For the first time in its history, Prosus' free cash flow, excluding the dividend it receives on its holding in Tencent, was positive, climbing to $36 million from negative $235 million in the last financial year. "We expect this momentum to continue, and to add at least the same level of incremental adjusted EBIT in the full year of 2026", Chief Financial Officer Nico Marais said in a statement. Naspers on Monday reported a 59.4 per cent jump in its full-year core headline earnings. ($1 = 0.8685 euros)
AsiaOne
2 days ago
- AsiaOne
Pope Leo urges politicians to respond to challenges posed by AI, World News
VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo warned politicians on Saturday (June 21) of the challenges posed by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), addressing its potential impact on younger people as a prime concern. Speaking at an event attended by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and parliamentary delegations from 68 countries, Leo revisited a topic that he has raised on a number of occasions during the first few weeks of his papacy. "In particular, it must not be forgotten that artificial intelligence functions as a tool for the good of human beings, not to diminish them or even to replace them," Leo said at an event held as part of the Roman Catholic Jubilee or Holy Year. AI proponents say it will speed up scientific and technological progress and help people to carry out routine tasks, granting them more time to pursue higher-value and creative work. In a statement, Meloni said she would treasure the teachings of the pope who also condemned the gulf between the richest and poorest in society in his comments. "Italy will continue its efforts, both nationally and internationally, to ensure that the development of AI is governed by humans and has the wellbeing of humans as its ultimate goal," she said. The US-born pontiff said attention was needed to protect "healthy, fair and sound lifestyles, especially for the good of younger generations." He noted that AI's "static memory" was in no way comparable to the "creative, dynamic" power of human memory. "Our personal life has greater value than any algorithm, and social relationships require spaces for development that far transcend the limited patterns that any soulless machine can pre-package," he said. Leo, who became pope in May, has spoken previously of the threat posed by AI to jobs and has called on journalists to use it responsibly. ALSO READ: Pope Leo criticises nationalist politics at Sunday Mass
