• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
LeadershipAI

Elon Musk: AI Poses ‘Vastly More Risk Than North Korea’

By
Lisa Marie Segarra
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Lisa Marie Segarra
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 12, 2017, 9:34 AM ET

As many in the United States and abroad are watching as tensions grow with North Korea, Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk issued a warning about artificial intelligence.

“If you’re not concerned about AI safety, you should be. Vastly more risk than North Korea,” Musk tweeted Friday, referencing Kim Jong Un’s threat of a missile strike on Guam.

The tweet also included a photo that reads, “In the end the machines will win.”

Musk also warned that artificial intelligence should be regulated the same way anything that could pose a danger to the public is.

This is not the first time Musk has warned people about AI.

Just last month, he called it a “fundamental existential risk for human civilization,” prompting Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to publicly disagree.

But Musk isn’t alone. Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking have also issued warnings regarding AI.

If you're not concerned about AI safety, you should be. Vastly more risk than North Korea. pic.twitter.com/2z0tiid0lc

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2017

Nobody likes being regulated, but everything (cars, planes, food, drugs, etc) that's a danger to the public is regulated. AI should be too.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2017

Musk is the founder of OpenAI, which is a non-profit promoting responsible development of artificial intelligence through research and an emphasis on ethics.

About the Author
By Lisa Marie Segarra
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Leadership

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.


Latest in Leadership

Greg Hart, CEO, Coursera.
SuccessLeadership
After 23 years working for Jeff Bezos, the CEO of a $1.3 billion skills platform shares lessons he learned from Andy Jassy and the Amazon founder
By Eleanor PringleDecember 26, 2025
2 hours ago
Kiara Nirghin, the co-founder and CTO of the applied AI lab Chima
AIBrainstorm AI
Gen Z founder on ‘AI anxiety’ and being pigeonholed as generation shortcut: that’s the ‘biggest misconception’
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 25, 2025
20 hours ago
SuccessMillionaires
Meet the millionaires living the ‘underconsumption’ life: They drive secondhand cars, batch cook, and never buy new clothes
By Eleanor PringleDecember 25, 2025
21 hours ago
Baby in hospital
SuccessBillionaires
Chinese billionaire who has fathered more than 100 children hopes to have dozens of U.S.-born boys to one day take over his business
By Emma BurleighDecember 25, 2025
22 hours ago
Butch Meily
Commentaryempathy
The global empathy crisis that confronts us this Christmas
By Butch MeilyDecember 25, 2025
23 hours ago
Telluride
North AmericaLabor
Telluride resort owner rips into ski patrol union after strikes shuts down slopes on Christmas
By Mead Gruver and The Associated PressDecember 25, 2025
1 day ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Real Estate
Mark Zuckerberg gifted noise-canceling headphones to his Palo Alto neighbors because of the nonstop construction around his 11 homes
By Dave SmithDecember 25, 2025
21 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Chinese billionaire who has fathered more than 100 children hopes to have dozens of U.S.-born boys to one day take over his business
By Emma BurleighDecember 25, 2025
22 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Personal Finance
Trump turns government into giant debt collector with threat to garnish wages on millions of Americans in default on student loans
By Annie Ma and The Associated PressDecember 24, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Even if the Supreme Court rules Trump's global tariffs are illegal, refunds are unlikely because that would be 'very complicated,' Hassett says
By Jason MaDecember 21, 2025
4 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Meet the millennial father of six who rebuilt his life through the trades—and questions America's obsession with college
By Eva RoytburgDecember 24, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Retail
Trump just declared Christmas Eve a national holiday. Here’s what’s open and closed
By Dave SmithDecember 24, 2025
2 days ago