AI to make ‘seismic change’ in all industries within four years, expert predicts

An AI-powered robot called Ai-Da will help to deliver the Royal Institution’s annual Christmas lectures on Boxing Day.

Growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) will create a “seismic change” in all industries within four years, an expert has said.

Aidan Meller, director of the Ai-Da Robot Project, said society is “only at the beginning” of AI, adding 2024 would be “a very big year” with developments such as a new version of Chat GPT and the Metaverse.

Known as the world’s first ultra-realistic robot artist, Ai-Da can create drawings, performance art and collaborative paintings and sculptures.

The robot will help Oxford University professor Mike Wooldridge to deliver the Royal Institution’s annual Christmas lectures on the BBC this week.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Meller said: “AI is incredibly powerful – it’s going to transform society as we know it, and I think we’re really only at the very beginning.

“We have these explosions of development, things like Chat GPT that people know about, but in actual fact as more and more people get to grips with it, we think that by 2026 or 2027, there’s going to be a seismic change as AI is in all industries.”

Mr Meller said the medium of art allows scientists to discuss and study issues around AI without the risk of any threat to humans because it is benign.

Talking about the Royal Institution lectures, he said: “I think AI is going to enable us to have very fake situations, and we’re not going to know whether they’re fake or not – that is where lies the problem.

“We don’t know what we’re dealing with, and we hope that these lectures by the Royal Institution are going to be able to really open that topic up.

“Remember we’ve got the elections next year, very worrying times for things that are fake and not fake, so in actual fact it is a very serious matter.”

Mr Meller described 2024 as “a very big year” for AI with the fifth version of ChatGPT set to be released which will be able to make actions rather than just act as a text-based editor.

He explained: “You could say to your phone ‘Can you book me the restaurant on Monday at seven?’. ChatGPT Five will be able to phone up the restaurant, speak to them audibly, say ‘Hi, I’m trying to get an appointment for seven’ and book it for you, and then come back to you and say ‘we’ve now done that’. Can you imagine how that’s going to be useful in business?”

Mr Meller also hailed progress in the Metaverse – an augmented reality platform created by Facebook parent company Meta – as a huge development in 2024.

By Press Association