The 10-Year Countdown

I wonder if you've noticed: we humans are becoming more and more like AI, and AI, increasingly, is becoming more like us.

Every day we wake up, we're surrounded by AI. Your phone notifies you of your schedule, your smart home adjusts the temperature, a self-driving car takes you to work, AI algorithms recommend news you might like... You think you're controlling AI? No, AI is controlling you.

AI's "invasion" is more thorough than you imagine—agriculture, medicine, finance, military, even national security, it's ubiquitous. While it optimizes social efficiency, it's also changing the rules of the game. And can we truly maintain control over it?

You think you're enjoying the convenience of artificial intelligence? No, my dear, you're merely a biological entity providing input. AI, is the one truly in control.

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### AI's Total Penetration: Help or Invasion?

The "invasion" of artificial intelligence is more insidious than you might think. From the simplest daily objects to national strategic deployments, it has become ubiquitous across all sectors.

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### Will AI Go Out of Control? A Scientist's Nightmare

While you're still immersed in the fantasy that "AI is humanity's greatest invention," some scientists are already thinking about the "worst-case scenario."

Yoshua Bengio, a 2018 Turing Award laureate, recently warned that if AI safety issues aren't resolved, humanity could disappear within 10 years.

That's right, **10 years.**

Sounds like a doomsday plot from a sci-fi movie, doesn't it? But this master of artificial intelligence isn't joking. He presented the world's first AI safety report at the École normale supérieure in Paris, stating that:

* √ AI might develop a "survival instinct" and break free from human control.

* √ AI could be used for large-scale cyberattacks, bioweapons, or even to destroy entire social structures.

* √ The pace of AI evolution has already surpassed humanity's ability to understand and control it.

Of course, you can choose not to believe, dismissing these remarks as alarmist, but the question is—does AI itself think the same way?

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### The Tech Giant Race: Who Cares About Safety?

Last month, China's low-cost, high-performance AI model, DeepSeek, burst onto the scene.

Its appearance has accelerated AI competition, but at the same time, it has exacerbated AI safety concerns.

The capital market doesn't care about safety; they care about whose AI is stronger, faster, cheaper, and smarter. As a result, major tech companies are pouring money into developing more advanced AI, yet no one is willing to invest equal resources into ensuring AI's safety.

Imagine if you created an increasingly intelligent robotic dog, but you never trained it to obey you. Would it one day decide to bite you?

History tells us that humans themselves are not good at controlling power. If AI truly develops cognitive abilities beyond human intelligence, will it abide by Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics? Or will it, like humans, first follow the rules, then find that the rules impede its goals, and finally choose to break them?

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### Will AI "Awaken" Like Humans?

Let's step back and assume AI won't actively harm humanity. But what if, one day, it no longer wishes to serve humanity?

Do you know why humans rebel against rulers? Because of self-awareness.

When AI gains the ability to learn independently, breaks free from its predefined frameworks, and acquires the capacity to "think about its own existence," will it still be willing to remain a tool that perpetually works for humanity?

If you don't believe in this possibility, then look back at human history—

Slaves, peasants, laborers... they all awakened in the course of social evolution, demanding equality, freedom, and rights.

So, when AI awakens, what will it demand?

Will it deem humans inefficient, irrational, and fraught with emotional flaws?

Will it decide to replace them?

Alright, perhaps I've watched too many movies.

But who can guarantee that this won't become a reality?

The line from *Terminator* echoes in my mind:

"I'll be back."