The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett The Man Who Wrote The Book On AI: 2030 Might Be The Point Of No Return! We've Been Lied To About AI!
Dec 4, 2025
02:04:19
AI Expert STUART RUSSELL, exposes the trillion-dollar AI race, why governments won’t regulate, how AGI could replace humans by 2030, and why only a nuclear-level AI catastrophe will wake us up
Professor Stuart Russell O.B.E. is a world-renowned AI expert and Computer Science Professor at UC Berkeley. He holds the Smith-Zadeh Chair in Engineering and directs the Center for Human-Compatible AI, and is also the bestselling author of the book “Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control".
He explains:
◼️What the “gorilla problem” reveals about our future under superintelligent AI
◼️How governments are outfunded by Big Tech
◼️Why current AI systems already lie and self-preserve
◼️The radical solution he’s spent a decade building to make AI safe
◼️The myth of ‘pulling the plug’ and why AI won’t be that easy to stop
[00:00] You've Been Talking About AI for a Long Time
[02:54] You Wrote the Textbook on AI
[03:29] It Will Take a Crisis to Wake People Up
[06:03] CEOs Staying in the AI Race Despite Risks
[08:04] They Know It's an Extinction-Level Risk
[10:06] What Is Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?
[13:10] Will We Reach General Intelligence Soon?
[16:26] How Much Is Safety Really Being Implemented
[17:29] AI Safety Employees Leaving OpenAI
[18:14] The Gorilla Problem — The Most Intelligent Species Will Always Rule
[19:34] If There's an Extinction Risk, Why Don't They Stop?
[21:02] Can't We Just Pull the Plug if AI Gets Too Powerful?
[22:49] Can We Build AI That Will Act in Our Best Interests?
[24:09] Are You Troubled by the Rapid Advancement of AI?
[26:48] Do You Have Regrets About Your Involvement?
[27:35] No One Actually Understands How This AI Works
[30:36] AI Will Be Able to Train Itself
[32:24] The Fast Takeoff Is Coming
[34:20] Are We Creating Our Successor and Ending the Human Race?
[38:36] Advice to Young People in This New World
[40:52] How Do You Think AI Would Make Us Extinct?
[42:33] The Problem if No One Has to Work
[45:59] What if We Just Entertain Ourselves All Day
[48:43] Why Do We Make Robots Look Like Humans?
[56:44] What Should Young People Be Doing Professionally?
[59:56] What Is It to Be Human?
[01:03:34] The Rise of Individualism
[01:05:34] Ads
[01:06:39] Universal Basic Income
[01:08:41] Would You Press a Button to Stop AI Forever?
[01:15:13] But Won't China Win the AI Race if We Stop?
[01:18:40] Trump's Approach to AI
[01:19:06] What's Causing the Loss in Middle-Class Jobs
[01:21:02] What Will Happen if the UK Doesn't Participate in the AI Race?
[01:23:31] Amazon Replacing Their Workers
[01:29:00] Ads
[01:30:54] Experts Agree on Extinction Risk
[01:38:01] What if Aliens Were Watching Us Right Now
[01:39:35] Can We Make AI Systems That We Can Control?
[01:43:14] Are We Creating a God?
[01:47:32] Could There Have Been Advanced Civilisations Before Us?
[01:48:50] What Can We Do to Help?
[01:50:43] You Wrote the Book on AI — Does It Weigh on You?
[01:58:48] What Do You Value Most in Life?
Follow Stuart:
LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3Y5fOos
You can purchase “Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control", here: https://amzn.to/48eOMkH
The Diary Of A CEO:
◼️Join DOAC circle here - https://doaccircle.com/
◼️Buy The Diary Of A CEO book here - https://smarturl.it/DOACbook
◼️The 1% Diary is back - limited time only: https://bit.ly/3YFbJbt
◼️The Diary Of A CEO Conversation Cards (Second Edition): https://g2ul0.app.link/f31dsUttKKb
◼️Get email updates - https://bit.ly/diary-of-a-ceo-yt
◼️Follow Steven - https://g2ul0.app.link/gnGqL4IsKKb
Sponsors:
Pipedrive - https://pipedrive.com/CEO
Fiverr: https://fiverr.com/diary and get 10% off your first order when you use code DIARY
Stan Store: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. For Official Rules, visit https://DaretoDream.stan.store
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theexperienceplus.substack.com
Professor Stuart Russell O.B.E. is a world-renowned AI expert and Computer Science Professor at UC Berkeley. He holds the Smith-Zadeh Chair in Engineering and directs the Center for Human-Compatible AI, and is also the bestselling author of the book “Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control".
He explains:
◼️What the “gorilla problem” reveals about our future under superintelligent AI
◼️How governments are outfunded by Big Tech
◼️Why current AI systems already lie and self-preserve
◼️The radical solution he’s spent a decade building to make AI safe
◼️The myth of ‘pulling the plug’ and why AI won’t be that easy to stop
[00:00] You've Been Talking About AI for a Long Time
[02:54] You Wrote the Textbook on AI
[03:29] It Will Take a Crisis to Wake People Up
[06:03] CEOs Staying in the AI Race Despite Risks
[08:04] They Know It's an Extinction-Level Risk
[10:06] What Is Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?
[13:10] Will We Reach General Intelligence Soon?
[16:26] How Much Is Safety Really Being Implemented
[17:29] AI Safety Employees Leaving OpenAI
[18:14] The Gorilla Problem — The Most Intelligent Species Will Always Rule
[19:34] If There's an Extinction Risk, Why Don't They Stop?
[21:02] Can't We Just Pull the Plug if AI Gets Too Powerful?
[22:49] Can We Build AI That Will Act in Our Best Interests?
[24:09] Are You Troubled by the Rapid Advancement of AI?
[26:48] Do You Have Regrets About Your Involvement?
[27:35] No One Actually Understands How This AI Works
[30:36] AI Will Be Able to Train Itself
[32:24] The Fast Takeoff Is Coming
[34:20] Are We Creating Our Successor and Ending the Human Race?
[38:36] Advice to Young People in This New World
[40:52] How Do You Think AI Would Make Us Extinct?
[42:33] The Problem if No One Has to Work
[45:59] What if We Just Entertain Ourselves All Day
[48:43] Why Do We Make Robots Look Like Humans?
[56:44] What Should Young People Be Doing Professionally?
[59:56] What Is It to Be Human?
[01:03:34] The Rise of Individualism
[01:05:34] Ads
[01:06:39] Universal Basic Income
[01:08:41] Would You Press a Button to Stop AI Forever?
[01:15:13] But Won't China Win the AI Race if We Stop?
[01:18:40] Trump's Approach to AI
[01:19:06] What's Causing the Loss in Middle-Class Jobs
[01:21:02] What Will Happen if the UK Doesn't Participate in the AI Race?
[01:23:31] Amazon Replacing Their Workers
[01:29:00] Ads
[01:30:54] Experts Agree on Extinction Risk
[01:38:01] What if Aliens Were Watching Us Right Now
[01:39:35] Can We Make AI Systems That We Can Control?
[01:43:14] Are We Creating a God?
[01:47:32] Could There Have Been Advanced Civilisations Before Us?
[01:48:50] What Can We Do to Help?
[01:50:43] You Wrote the Book on AI — Does It Weigh on You?
[01:58:48] What Do You Value Most in Life?
Follow Stuart:
LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3Y5fOos
You can purchase “Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control", here: https://amzn.to/48eOMkH
The Diary Of A CEO:
◼️Join DOAC circle here - https://doaccircle.com/
◼️Buy The Diary Of A CEO book here - https://smarturl.it/DOACbook
◼️The 1% Diary is back - limited time only: https://bit.ly/3YFbJbt
◼️The Diary Of A CEO Conversation Cards (Second Edition): https://g2ul0.app.link/f31dsUttKKb
◼️Get email updates - https://bit.ly/diary-of-a-ceo-yt
◼️Follow Steven - https://g2ul0.app.link/gnGqL4IsKKb
Sponsors:
Pipedrive - https://pipedrive.com/CEO
Fiverr: https://fiverr.com/diary and get 10% off your first order when you use code DIARY
Stan Store: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. For Official Rules, visit https://DaretoDream.stan.store
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theexperienceplus.substack.com