Artificial intelligence created 40,000 new “chemical weapons” in just 6 hours

Artificial intelligence  created  40,000 new “chemical weapons” in just 6 hours

An artificial intelligence created 40,000 potentially fatal chemicals in just six hours, including ones that mimic VX, one of the most toxic substances known to man. This is a "wake-up call," according to the researchers.

In just 6 hours, AI creates 40,000 "chemical weapons."Collaborations Pharmaceuticals researchers carried out the experiment. Machine learning is used by the company to develop novel medications and treatment alternatives for uncommon diseases. The scientists gave their AI a somewhat different task as part of the Spiez Convergence, a symposium on innovations that could effect biological weapons conventions.

According to the writers, they did not come up with this concept on their own. The findings, on the other hand, should serve as a "wake-up call." To create compounds that might cause significant harm, some chemistry or toxicological knowledge is still required. However, when machine learning is used, the barrier is substantially lower because you simply need to be able to write and analyse the result.

The scientists concentrated their research on compounds that are comparable to the nerve poison VX. The AI computed not only VX, but also a slew of other known poisons — as well as a slew of novel chemicals that the researchers believe are "possible" according to their chemical structure. In certain situations, they are thought to be much more harmful.

For security considerations, the researchers do not delve into precise specifics in their article. Because, as Urbina points out, some of the compounds are not difficult to copy. Anyone who knows how to programme in Python, obtains relevant open-source datasets from the Internet, and puts in a weekend's worth of effort might go a long way.

I don’t want to be alarmist in saying that there’s going to be AI-driven chemical warfare. I don’t think that’s the case now. I don’t think it’s going to be the case anytime soon. But it’s something that’s starting to become a possibility.

Fabio Urbina, lead author of the paper (Source: The Verge)