U.S. tech colossus Microsoft (MSFT) has formed a team to develop what it calls “humanist” superintelligence. This comes as efforts to develop superintelligence — which refers to advanced AI capabilities that exceed human intellectual capacity — have sparked global controversy.
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What Does Microsoft’s ‘Humanist’ Approach Mean?
According to Mustafa Suleyman, head of Microsoft AI, the “humanist” approach to superintelligence means Microsoft’s goal is to “solve real concrete problems” through advanced AI capabilities that “remain grounded and controllable.” Suleyman will lead the new group, officially known as the MAI Superintelligence Team.
“Instead of being designed to beat all humans at all tasks and dominate everything, humanist superintelligence begins rooted in specific societal challenges that improve human well-being,” Suleyman explained, pointing to Microsoft’s initial success in the sub-domain of medical superintelligence.
The AI chief noted that Microsoft’s medical AI system, called MAI-DxO, managed to crack 85% of very tough medical diagnosis cases from The New England Journal of Medicine, compared to just about a 20% success rate among human expert doctors who had to carry out several expensive tests to reach that stage.
Superintelligence Sees Pushback
Microsoft’s announcement comes about two weeks after hundreds of prominent business leaders from around the world, including Virgin Group founder Richard Branson and Apple (AAPL) co-founder Steve Wozniak, called for a ban on the development of superintelligence.
Amid the controversy, efforts to develop superintelligence remain. Tech giant Meta Platforms (META) even calls its AI branch “Meta Superintelligence Labs.” AI startups such as xAI (PC:XAIIQ) and OpenAI (PC:OPAIQ) also continue to compete to develop advanced large language models that could create the pathway for superintelligence.
This week, Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s (NVDA) chief executive and several elite scientists, advanced the view that artificial general intelligence (AGI) — which matches human intellectual capacity– is already evident in current technologies. AGI is expected to precede superintelligence.
Artificial general intelligence milestones formed a key part of Microsoft’s recent restructuring deal and $135 billion stake in OpenAI.
Is MSFT a Good Stock to Buy Now?
Turning to Wall Street, Microsoft’s shares currently enjoy a Strong Buy consensus rating. This is based on 33 Buys issued by analysts over the past three months. Moreover, the average MSFT price target of $636.36 indicates nearly 28% upside from the current trading level.
