AI leaders under questioning: Hassabis on the conflict between science and capital
Demis Hassabis and other AI leaders are driven by different motives: for some, it is scientific discovery; for others, commercial profit and political influence
Behind every major breakthrough in artificial intelligence stand people with contradictory motives: scientific curiosity, desire for profit, and the drive for political power. It is these forces, according to author Sebastian Mallaby, that shape the future of technology and determine how it will influence the world.
Who Drives the Race
Demis Hassabis, founder and chief scientist of DeepMind, is driven primarily by scientific passion. For him, AI is a fundamental way to understand the nature of intelligence and consciousness. His interest lies in pure science, publications, and recognition from the scientific community. But alongside such figures work entrepreneurs like Sam Altman and Elon Musk, for whom technology is a tool for creating economic value and geopolitical influence. For them, AI is not simply a scientific challenge, but a way to reshape the entire global economy. Mallaby explores this palette of motives in his book, showing how opposing ambitions create dynamics that push the industry forward. The system works precisely because people with different goals are acting within it.
Science and Capital Under Tension
Between scientists and businessmen in the AI industry, there exists a tense but symbiotic relationship. Science needs resources—laboratory capacity, computing power, top talent—which only capital can provide. Capital needs ideas, authority, and innovations that science brings. But interests often diverge radically:
- A scientist wants to publish results and share them with the world
- A businessman wants to keep discoveries secret for competitive advantage
- A statesman worries about national security
Mallaby poses a sharp question: where will this struggle lead when AI systems become far more powerful? Will the scientific community be able to uphold principles of openness, or will capital seize the narrative?
Governments Lag Behind
Politicians are far behind. Hardly any government is truly prepared to manage systems that are rapidly becoming more powerful. There is no clear consensus on how to regulate AI, no mechanisms of real-time control. Each country tries to build its own strategy: the EU pursues strict regulations, the US chooses a hands-off approach, China concentrates AI in state hands. But no approach appears fully adequate to the challenge that the technology poses.
What This Means
The history of AI is not a story of good and evil, but a story of different types of ambitions that interweave and interact. Hassabis, Altman, Musk, and others are not enemies—they are simply different driving forces, each acting according to its own logic. The question Mallaby raises: can society find a balance between innovation and safety before AI systems become truly uncontrollable?