OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says AI is like an intern today, but it will soon match experienced software engineers
Speaking at the Snowflake Summit last week, Altman said, 'Today [AI] is like an intern that can work for a couple of hours but at some point it'll be like an experienced software engineer that can work for a couple of days,'
'I would bet next year that in some limited cases, at least in some small ways, we start to see agents that can help us discover new knowledge, or can figure out solutions to business problems that are very non-trivial,' Altman added.
Meanwhile, the OpenAI CEO while speaking at the Milken Institute's Global Conference last month said, 'You're not going to lose your job to an AI, but you're going to lose your job to someone who uses AI,'
Notably, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei had recently claimed that AI could wipe out almost half of all entry level white collar jobs in the next 5 years as the new technology gets better by time.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai, however, seemed more optimistic while speaking at the Lex Fridman podcast last week when he said that the technology will serve as an 'accelerator' and will free up humans to do more creative tasks. The tech leader also stated that Google will be hiring software engineers in the short to medium term.
Disagreeing with Anthropic CEO's statement, Pichai said, 'I respect that … I think it's important to voice those concerns and debate them.'
Notably, AI companies like Google and OpenAI had launched their software engineering agents earlier in the year which are aimed at replacing software enginners.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
3 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Why America can't shake off inflation
The Yiddish phrase 'farshlepteh krenk', untranslatable into English, describes an illness that just won't go away. That is how some rich countries' experience of inflation has felt. The rate of price increases has fallen sharply since the acute phase in 2022, when inflation across the OECD rose to nearly 11%, its highest since the 1970s. In June average inflation across the club was around 2.5%, only a smidge above most central banks' targets. But many Anglophone countries still have lingering symptoms. To diagnose the malaise more accurately, we have updated our measure of 'inflation entrenchment' for ten rich countries. We construct this from five indicators: core inflation, unit labour costs, inflation dispersion, inflation expectations and Google-search behaviour. We rank each country on each indicator, then combine the rankings to form an overall score. Chart The results reveal a linguistic divide. Countries in the EU and Asia perform well. France, which also did well the last time we conducted this exercise, in 2024, now has the least entrenched inflation of all the countries we looked at. Chapeau bas to them. Japanese inflation, true to form, has a feeble grip. In the English-speaking world, however, inflation looks chronic. Britain is the worst performer overall. In the year to the second quarter of 2025 the country's core prices (which exclude food and energy) rose by 4.3%. Three-quarters of the items in a Briton's consumer basket have risen in price by more than 2% over the past year—unusually high 'inflation dispersion'. Australia is not far behind, with unit labour costs (what is paid to workers to produce a unit of output) nearly 5% higher in the first quarter than they were a year before. Despite a weaker economy than its southern neighbour, Canada's inflation problem is almost as bad. A few factors may explain the persistence of inflation in these places. From 2022 to 2024 the governments of Anglophone countries, on average, increased their budget deficits by two percentage points of GDP, versus a one-percentage-point contraction elsewhere. This boosted demand—the equivalent of licking doorhandles in an attempt to fight off an illness. English-speaking countries have also welcomed lots of immigrants in recent years. At least in the short run, the new arrivals may push up the prices of certain things, especially housing. Amid this bad news, there is still cause for hope that inflation will soon look less entrenched. The absolute level of inflation entrenchment seems to be ebbing: the country with the least entrenched inflation last time we did the exercise, Japan, would have ranked sixth-worst this time. The Bank of England can point to Britons' weak inflation expectations as evidence that price pressures will soon fade. The Bank of Canada can highlight low inflation dispersion. In addition, most Anglophone governments are simultaneously tightening fiscal policy and slashing immigration. America is the exception. Although immigration is declining, the government still has its foot on the fiscal pedal. And President Donald Trump's tariffs have stoked fears of another round of price rises, as American firms pass their higher costs on to consumers. Americans are more likely than others to Google inflation-related terms. Over the coming year, the public expects prices to rise by 5.5%, higher than people in any other country. A lingering illness is annoying; one that gets worse is harder to bear.
The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
The journey to Singapore is just a start
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu's visit to Singapore from July 26 to 30 was a strategic exercise in economic diplomacy — an effort to reaffirm his government's commitment to building a globally competitive investment climate while quietly distancing the State from the shadow of policy volatility that marked the previous YSRCP regime. Mr. Naidu's foreign between 2014 and 2019 and now in 2025 are stories of contrasts. Between 2014 and 2019, in his first term as Chief Minister of a State that had been newly bifurcated, Mr. Naidu wanted to create a capital, attract foreign investment, and market Andhra Pradesh as an innovation-led region. Amaravati was the centrepiece of this vision, and Singapore played a starring role through consultancy company Surbana Jurong's master plan. His first-round global engagements were aspirational. They focused on building brand Andhra, learning best practices in governance, agriculture, and infrastructure, and positioning the State as the 'Sunrise Andhra Pradesh'. The results were mixed: he secured significant goodwill and several MoUs, but political headwinds and fiscal constraints meant that not all plans matured into reality. In 2025, the circumstances could not be more different. Returning to power after defeating the YSRCP, Mr. Naidu has inherited a State grappling with damaged investor confidence, policy reversals, and economic slowdown. This time, his travels have the urgency of a rescue mission. The rhetoric has shifted from building something entirely new to repairing and restoring what was lost. The narrative now is 'Reset and Rebuild Andhra Pradesh'. One of the most notable shifts inMr. Naidu's 2025 pitch is its geographic spotlight has moved from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam, now framed as the State's economic nucleus. Amaravati — once his crowning vision — was derailed, mocked, and abandoned under the previous regime. By contrast, Visakhapatnam offers a compelling narrative: a coastal city with thriving port infrastructure, tech parks, and emerging data clusters, well-positioned as the 'Gateway to Southeast Asia'. Singapore investors were told of opportunities in green hydrogen, quantum computing, and digital infrastructure. Mr. Naidu's meetings highlighted Google's interest in establishing a data centre, alongside new housing projects with Surbana Jurong and an Eversendai facility. These signals were meant to show that Andhra Pradesh is back on the map for cutting-edge sectors. Yet the conversations in Singapore were inevitably shaped by the past. The YSRCP government's abrupt withdrawal from key Singapore-linked projects remains fresh in institutional memory. From 2019 to 2024, several high-profile MoUs and joint ventures with Singaporean entities were unilaterally cancelled or left to wither. This had a chilling effect, not just in Singapore but in global business circles that had been watching Andhra Pradesh's trajectory. While no official in Singapore publicly criticised the previous administration during Mr. Naidu's visit, the message during private conversations was reportedly that they would 'revert after making an internal assessment'. The Telugu diaspora's embrace of Naidu was unambiguous. Over 2,500 NRIs gathered to greet him. But in boardrooms, investors wanted to see sustained stability and early wins before making major commitments. Mr. Naidu knows the criticism from his first term — that too many MoUs failed to materialise — still hangs over him. This time, he cannot afford a repeat. For Naidu 2.0 to succeed, agreements must translate into jobs, infrastructure, and visible economic growth. If the Singapore trip yields tangible results within the next year and a half, Mr. Naidu will not only consolidate his position at home but also set a precedent for how Indian chief ministers can leverage foreign engagements to drive State-level economic diplomacy. If not, critics will portray it as an expensive exercise in public relations, echoing the opposition YSRCP's current claims that the visit was more show than substance. The stakes in 2025 are higher than in 2014. Back then, Mr. Naidu had the luxury of time and the novelty of leading a new State. Today, he faces a compressed political calendar and the burden of repairing both the state's economic narrative and his own political legacy. Ultimately, the Singapore visit is less a victory lap than the opening move in a long, complex game.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Building trust and confidence for agentic Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant promise-it's reshaping our lives right now. From diagnosing diseases to powering personalised learning and even orchestrating moments of commerce, AI's capabilities are unlocking new frontiers in productivity and human potential. Independence Day 2025 Modi signals new push for tech independence with local chips Before Trump, British used tariffs to kill Indian textile Bank of Azad Hind: When Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose gave India its own currency As we look ahead, there's no question that AI will be a driving force behind the commerce of tomorrow - enabling seamless, secure, and intelligent experiences that are only beginning to take shape. Yet, this future hinges on a crucial factor: trust. According to recent research from the Institute for the Future and Visa, global trust in AI companies has declined to 53%, down from 61% just five years ago. The path forward is clear: to truly realise AI's promise, we must close the trust gap and ensure these technologies are built responsibly, transparently, and with the interests of people at their core. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Struggling With Tinnitus? This May Surprise You Tinnitus Experts Undo Enabling Intelligent Commerce As we shared in our recent "Commerce of Tomorrow, Today" report, the next era of commerce will be driven by intelligent, interconnected experiences. Consumers are using AI to discover products, compare prices, and make purchases with unprecedented ease. The rise of commerce driven by agentic AI innovations-where AIpowered virtual assistants act on our behalf to shop, negotiate, and buy-will require new levels of authentication, verification, and trust. These agents will need to not only understand our preferences but act transparently and ethically as extensions of ourselves. Live Events Data, Intellectual Property Trust in AI begins with trust in how data is handled. Visa's global payments network is built on the responsible use of data-to prevent fraud, enhance security, and deliver value to our clients and consumers. Our data platform is one of the most sophisticated and secure in the world, and we take our stewardship responsibilities seriously. As AI systems become more powerful, companies must elevate their approach to data privacy and intellectual property. It's imperative to obtain consent, safeguard personal data, and prevent misuse. Implementing AI Responsibly The rise of agentic AI demands a new approach to technology deployment. Historically, the "move fast and break things" mentality has driven rapid innovation-but with AI, especially in sensitive domains like payments, healthcare, and news, safety and responsibility must come first. Empowering Consumer Control Building this responsible approach to AI requires putting the right infrastructure in place. Through our Visa Intelligent Commerce APIs, we're creating a framework where consumers maintain granular control over their data and AI interactions. Central to this approach is our use of data tokens, which create a secure layer between consumer information and AI systems. This allows for personalised, intelligent experiences without exposing sensitive personal data-giving consumers the benefits of AI-powered commerce while maintaining full control over their information. We're also working across the entire payments ecosystem-merchants, financial institutions, technology partners, and regulators-to establish industry standards for AI-driven commerce that prioritise consumer protection from the ground up. Rather than retrofitting privacy into existing systems, we're building these principles into the foundation of next-generation commerce infrastructure. This includes collaborating with policymakers to develop frameworks governing how AI agents interact with payment systems, what authentication is required for autonomous transactions, and how consumer rights are protected as commerce becomes increasingly automated. Trust for Future of Commerce Closing the AI trust gap is not a solo endeavor-it's a collective responsibility. As AI becomes more pervasive and more autonomous, we must define what we want these systems to do-and, just as importantly, what we do not want them to do. Governance, oversight, and continuous engagement are essential to shaping a future where AI expands, rather than erodes, human potential. (The author is President, Technology, at Visa. He will be speaking at The Economic Times World Leaders Forum in New Delhi)
