The global conversation around artificial intelligence has shifted from existential fears of super-intelligence to a more pragmatic focus on everyday applications, even as adoption and investment surge at historic levels.
In 2023, a survey by researcher Katja Grace revealed that up to half of leading artificial intelligence experts believed there was at least a 10 percent chance the technology could cause human extinction. At the time, A.I. had just hit 100 million monthly users, and public fears often echoed the sci-fi warnings of the film Her.
Two years later, the tone has shifted. While some voices still predict dramatic leaps toward superintelligence, the prevailing narrative now emphasizes A.I. as an ordinary tool rather than an existential threat. Princeton scholars Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor argued in their April publication, A.I. as Normal Technology, that instead of viewing A.I. as “a separate species, a highly autonomous, potentially superintelligent entity,” it should be understood “as a tool that we can and should remain in control of.”
Leading figures in technology have reinforced this recalibration. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella dismissed near-term talk of artificial general intelligence, urging instead a focus on measurable economic impact. OpenAI chief Sam Altman recently admitted that “A.G.I. was not even ‘a superuseful term,’” conceding that the field may be in a bubble. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Elon Musk, once vocal evangelists, have also shifted toward highlighting practical applications over speculative futures.
Yet the sector remains far from ordinary. Surveys show that over half of Americans have already used A.I. tools, with one-third using them daily. Capital spending on data centers and chip manufacturing is now outpacing most other U.S. industries, while investors pour billions into robotics and embodied A.I.
The conversation may sound more grounded today, but the scale of investment and adoption suggests the “normal” A.I. future could prove anything but ordinary.
THIS WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DNYUZ