Warren Buffett Issues Grave Warning About AI, Saying It Would Make Scams Far More Convincing, Revving Up Fraud

By Jace Dela Cruz

May 06, 2024 02:02 AM EDT

Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett has warned about artificial intelligence (AI) scams, which he believes could evolve into "the growth industry of all time."  

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 19: Warren Buffett attends 'Becoming Warren Buffett' World Premiere at The Museum of Modern Art on January 19, 2017 in New York City.
(Photo : Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)

Warren Buffett Raises Alarm on AI Scams

At the recent Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in an Omaha arena, Warren Buffett cautioned thousands of shareholders about deepfake AI being used for large-scale financial scams as he recounted a fake video that looked and sounded like him who asked strangers for cash.

"I practically would have sent money to myself over in some crazy country," the 93-year-old billionaire investing guru quipped. According to the Associated Press, Buffett expressed worry that scammers will exploit the AI technology and may do more harm than good to society. 

Buffett even likened AI to an atom bomb, and said the world has let the "genie out of the bottle," and that "genie's been doing some terrible things lately." However, he acknowledged having a limited understanding of the technology.

"As someone who doesn't understand a damn thing about it, it has enormous potential for good and enormous potential for harm, and I just don't know how that plays out," Buffett said, as AP reported.

READ NEXT: Warren Buffett Donates a Whooping $870 Million in Berkshire Hathaway Stock to 4 Charities Before Thanksgiving

Berkshire Hathaway Reduces Apple Holdings

Berkshire Hathaway announced a substantial decline in earnings, attributed to a decrease in the paper value of its investments and reductions in its Apple holdings. The company reported its first-quarter profit of $12.7 billion, a 64% decline from the previous year.

Warren Buffett urged shareholders to focus on the operating earnings derived from its owned companies, which increased significantly by 39% to $11.222 billion. This performance was primarily driven by the strong results from Berkshire's insurance subsidiaries. 

READ MORE: Warren Buffett's Trusted Associate Charlie Munger Dies at 99: What's Next for Berkshire Hathaway?

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