The potential risks associated with artificial intelligence have been increasingly underscored by Fortune 500 companies in their annual reports. The number of firms highlighting AI as a risk factor has surged by 473.5% in the past year, a new report reveals.
What Happened: A study by Arize AI found that 281 of the Fortune 500 companies, representing 56.2% of the total, have cited AI as a potential risk. This marks a significant increase from the previous year when only 49 companies, or 9.8%, had flagged AI risks.
The report highlights the growing influence of generative AI across various industries, even those that have yet to fully embrace the technology. Most mentions of AI in the annual reports are a risk factor, presenting an opportunity for companies to stand out by emphasizing their innovation and providing context on their use of generative AI.
The surge in AI warnings coincides with the increased awareness and interest in AI following the release of OpenAI's ChatGPT in late 2022.
Industries most concerned about AI risks include media and entertainment, software and tech, telecoms, healthcare, financials, and retailers. On the other hand, automotive companies showed the least concern, with only 18.8% flagging AI risks.
"If annual reports of the Fortune 500 make one thing clear, it's that the impact of generative AI is being felt across a wide array of industries—even those not yet embracing the technology," the report said. "Given that most mentions of AI are as a risk factor, there is a real opportunity for enterprises to stand out by highlighting their innovation and providing context on how they are using generative AI."
Why It Matters: The surge in AI risk warnings by Fortune 500 companies comes amid a broader discussion about the potential downsides of AI. In June, a Pew Research survey found that 52% of Americans were more concerned than excited about the increased use of AI, coinciding with an uptick in awareness about AI.
Moreover, U.S. regulators have flagged AI as a potential risk to the nation's financial system, calling for increased supervision and monitoring of this rapidly progressing technology. This is the first instance of the panel addressing the potential dangers of AI.
Meanwhile, the surge in AI risk warnings also follows the release of ChatGPT by OpenAI, which has been a subject of controversy. In July, a group of whistleblowers at OpenAI filed a complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission, alleging that the company had been obstructing its employees from reporting potential risks associated with its AI technology to regulators.
《財富》500強公司的年度報告中越來越多地強調了與人工智能相關的潛在風險。一份新的報告顯示，在過去的一年中，將人工智能視爲風險因素的公司數量激增了473.5％。
發生了什麼：Arize AI的一項研究發現，財富500強公司中有281家（佔總數的56.2％）將人工智能列爲潛在風險。這標誌着與去年相比大幅增加，當時只有49家公司（佔9.8％）舉報了人工智能風險。
該報告強調了生成式人工智能對各個行業的影響越來越大，即使是那些尚未完全採用該技術的行業也是如此。年度報告中大多數提及人工智能都是風險因素，這爲公司提供了通過強調創新和提供使用生成式人工智能的背景來脫穎而出的機會。
隨着OpenAI的ChatGPT於2022年底發佈，人工智能警告的激增，人們對人工智能的認識和興趣有所提高。
最關注人工智能風險的行業包括媒體和娛樂、軟件和科技、電信、醫療保健、金融和零售商。另一方面，汽車公司表現出的擔憂最少，只有18.8％的人表示人工智能風險。
報告說：「如果說財富500強的年度報告清楚地說明了一件事，那就是生成式人工智能的影響力在衆多行業中都能感受到——即使是那些尚未採用該技術的行業也是如此。」「鑑於大多數提及人工智能都是風險因素，企業確實有機會通過突出其創新並提供有關如何使用生成式人工智能的背景來脫穎而出。」
爲何重要：財富500強公司的人工智能風險警告激增是在對人工智能潛在缺點的更廣泛討論之際發佈的。6月，皮尤研究中心的一項調查發現，有52％的美國人對人工智能的使用增加感到擔憂而不是興奮，與此同時，人們對人工智能的認識有所提高。
此外，美國監管機構已將人工智能列爲美國金融體系的潛在風險，呼籲加強對這種快速進步技術的監督和監測。這是該小組討論人工智能潛在危險的第一個例子。
同時，人工智能風險警告的激增也是在OpenAI發佈ChatGPT之後出現的，該版本一直備受爭議。7月，OpenAI的一群舉報人向美國證券交易委員會提出申訴，指控該公司一直在阻礙其員工向監管機構報告與其人工智能技術相關的潛在風險。
