Karen Hao: “The only way to develop decolonial AI systems is to be local”

The term “artificial intelligence” has become ubiquitous in recent years, with supporters of the industry pointing to its seeming inevitability within the arc of technological progress. However, increasing evidence of the toll the industry is taking on the environment has prompted critics to argue that it is just another way for large corporations to control natural resources. CEOs of AI companies, often in public feuds with each other, have revealed their ambition to shape public ideas and infrastructures. These companies are in a race to consolidate power, militarise the industry and make themselves too big to fail.

The extent of the AI industry’s willingness to sideline fundamental ethical concerns in the pursuit of profit was on display during the US–Israel war on Iran, which started on 28 February. Among other targets, the United States bombed the Shajareh Tayyebeh primary school in Minab, in Iran, and killed nearly one hundred and eighty people, most of them girls between the ages of seven and twelve. Anthropic, the company behind the AI model Claude, was reportedly linked to the bombing. Its CEO, Dario Amodei, later said he did not know how Claude had been used. He argued that its use had not violated the company’s red lines and that a human, not Claude, made the final call.

Karen Hao is a journalist and author who has written extensively on artificial intelligence. Her book Empire of AI profiled OpenAI and traced the rise of the industry. She also co-created the Pulitzer Center’s AI Spotlight Series, a programme that trains journalists on how to cover AI, and The AI Resist List, a project that counters Silicon Valley’s inevitability narrative by showcasing global grassroots movements holding the industry accountable. Ajeet Mahale, an assistant editor at The Caravan, spoke to her about the industry’s trajectory, the many contentious claims made by its supporters, and the more conscionable attempts to harness AI, which respect the environment and the dignity of local communities.

In India, we got a glimpse of the Sam Altman–Dario Amodei feud when they refused to hold hands during the AI summit. Your book describes cults of personalities in the industry. Has it always been like this?