Even the ‘Godmother of AI’ Doesn’t Know What AGI Is

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Artificial general intelligence (AGI) is a term that gets thrown around a lot, especially by companies like OpenAI, which is striving to build AGI "to benefit all of humanity." With OpenAI having raised $6.6 billion for this goal, it seems like a crucial concept. Yet, if you're confused about what AGI actually is, you're not alone—not even the "godmother of AI" can define it.

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Fei-Fei Li, the renowned AI researcher and pioneer behind ImageNet, admitted she doesn't fully understand AGI either. During a discussion at Credo AI's responsible AI leadership summit, Li stated, “I frankly don’t even know what AGI means... I haven’t seen it.” Li, who has been instrumental in the development of modern AI, prefers to focus on practical applications rather than philosophical or speculative discussions about AGI.

Despite her groundbreaking work in the field, which helped spur the AI revolution through the creation of ImageNet, Li remains grounded in her academic roots. She emphasized the importance of rigor and evidence-based research, distancing herself from the abstract notion of AGI.

OpenAI’s Sam Altman has tried to define AGI as a system that performs tasks on par with a "median human coworker." But this still leaves a lot of ambiguity, especially when contrasted with OpenAI’s five internal levels of AGI, ranging from chatbots to organizational AI that can do the work of entire companies. The complexity and confusion surrounding these terms leave experts like Li, and the rest of us, wondering just how close we are to AGI—or what it even means.

While the future of AGI remains uncertain, Li is clear about what excites her: spatial intelligence. As the co-founder of World Labs, Li aims to advance AI’s understanding of the 3D world, bridging the gap between visual perception and action. For her, this represents a more tangible and exciting frontier in AI development.

As AGI continues to be a buzzword in tech, it’s clear that even the pioneers of AI are still figuring out what it truly means. Until then, practical advancements like those Fei-Fei Li is working on may be the key to unlocking AI’s true potential.