SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son Warns AI could Become “Super Dangerous”

SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son has issued a rare warning about the safety risks posed by increasingly capable artificial intelligence, saying countries need to cooperate to manage the technology.

: SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son warns of safety risks from increasingly powerful AI systems. [Photo: Softbank X]

Son spoke on the sidelines of the Science and Technology in Society forum in Kyoto, alongside White House science and technology policy adviser Michael Kratsios.

An accelerating increase in AI capabilities makes it important for countries to build trust and work together to harness the technology, Son said.

“We don't have any more luxury of having human fight against human,” Son said, arguing that governments need to cooperate against what he described as a potentially much greater threat from powerful AI systems.

“Superintelligence in the wrong hands can become ‘super dangerous,’” he said.

The comments were notable because Son has been one of the technology industry's strongest advocates for AI investment and has repeatedly argued that increasingly capable AI systems and machines could generate enormous economic value.

SoftBank has directed nearly $65 billion toward OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, according to Bloomberg reporting.

Kratsios was in Kyoto to promote a US-led initiative involving 17 countries aimed at using AI to accelerate scientific research.

The United States and 16 other countries endorsed the “Kyoto Vision for a Golden Age of Science” on Oct. 4.

The participating countries included Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Germany, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. China was not among the initial signatories.

The declaration calls for greater access to AI research tools, scientific data, computing infrastructure and experimental facilities, while encouraging new approaches to scientific funding and training.

Son also said AI services would continue to improve rapidly and predicted that AI and learning machines could account for at least 20% of global gross domestic product by 2040.