QUESTION Time has been called out for a “dangerous” lack of balance on its panel – with Zack Polanski suggesting the BBC had allowed a billionaire to buy “an entire episode”.
Questions were raised after the BBC confirmed the five panellists for a special on artificial intelligence (AI), which will be broadcast from Dulwich on Thursday evening.
Alongside Labour minister Darren Jones – who is known for championing AI in government – and Tory shadow technology secretary Julia Lopez, the panel will feature former Google X executive Mo Gawdat, Tony Blair Institute AI director Laura Gilbert, and AI company executive Victor Riparbelli.
Journalist Carole Cadwalladr said the panel “is the equivalent of pitting Nigel Farage against Rupert Lowe with a bit of Tommy Robinson thrown in”.
Gawdat, was formerly the chief business officer for Google X – a semi-secret research and development facility founded by Google in 2010 with the mission of pursuing radical “moonshot” technologies.
While, as the BBC noted, Gawdat has warned that AI has its dangers, he has repeatedly called for it to be given control over human society in its entirety.
“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
Gilbert is the senior director of AI and head of the “AI for government” program at the Tony Blair Institute, which has accepted more than £250 million from Donald Trump ally, tech billionaire, and Oracle owner Larry Ellison since 2021.
JoeyJoJoeJr_Shabadoo on
So all five panelists are pro-AI?
That is unbalanced yeah, whatever you think of Polanski.
Tomatoflee on
It’s getting insane at this point. We can’t just allow special interests to control all of the national conversation.
Lopsided_Camel_6962 on
Polanski is right and for better or worse he is the only public figure calling out the establishment on issues like this.
FlaviousTiberius on
>“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
To be honest I’m much less worried about what the AI might do than I am about what the people who own it will do with it. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the technology itself, its just its being owned and utilised by the worst people on Earth.
Duanedoberman on
I haven’t watched QT for about 5 years, its obviously being manipulated to make sure specific agendas get promoted.
drewbles82 on
I agree. You can see a massive difference in how Reform are treated the last year or so. Given so much time on the news, media…they had the same amount of MP’s yet get more coverage Greens, libs, often even more than the Tories. QuestionTime rarely goes a week without a Reform member on but will happily not have any Greens on for months
Spamgrenade on
“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
I’m 100% up for an Iain M Banks style AI future. That’s the sort of thing all these guys have in mind right?
Engineer-Miserable on
He’s not wrong, this reeks of ‘I for one welcome out new overlords’ rather than a balanced debate about the dangers. Geoffrey Hinton Yoshua Bengio, Stuart Russel, at least one of them should have been invited to balance this out and talk about the real dangers instead of it being a fluff piece about how great AI is.
Elemayowe on
>”Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
How is the BBC giving this lunatic a platform?
hantsspur on
This guy is a fool. Give it a rest Dave, sorry Zac.
Qcumber69 on
Tbh AI is coming whether people like it or not.
The people who learn to use it will probably still have jobs. The people who don’t risk becoming the human backup systems — like Chernobyl using men when the robots failed.
The real leveller will probably be cost, because the best AI tools will only be affordable to certain companies and individuals at first.
Salty-Bid1597 on
It’s a tv show about AI. Of course the experts are going to be involved in AI.
Why would you put Sharon from Folkestone on there to talk about something she knows nothing about?
Also everytime he says “billionaires” I just hear “cosmopolitan financiers”. Yeuch.
Jam555jar on
This guy and his tinfoil hat conspiracies. Why does he get airtime?
evijguano on
Rather than being hailed as a wonder for humanity, it’s being lauded by it’s exponents as a way to make even more money regardless of the consequences, hardly surprising folk are worried. ’Shall we help humanity? Nah just me me me thanks’
Old_Course9344 on
There is nothing stopping Mr Polanski from staging his own version of Question Time with a stronger panel.
I would suggest that he does so on a platform that is widely viewable
If he gave voices to everyone effected, his ratings would improve and humiliate the BBC
Personal_Director441 on
In other news water is wet, sky is blue and the sun is hot. BBC news and editorial is basically a rich right wingers plaything now, facilitated by 14 years of the Tories loading sycophants into senior positions.
NoTitleChamp on
Nothing says balanced like getting a complete pro AI guest line up. /s
18 Comments
QUESTION Time has been called out for a “dangerous” lack of balance on its panel – with Zack Polanski suggesting the BBC had allowed a billionaire to buy “an entire episode”.
Questions were raised after the BBC confirmed the five panellists for a special on artificial intelligence (AI), which will be broadcast from Dulwich on Thursday evening.
Alongside Labour minister Darren Jones – who is known for championing AI in government – and Tory shadow technology secretary Julia Lopez, the panel will feature former Google X executive Mo Gawdat, Tony Blair Institute AI director Laura Gilbert, and AI company executive Victor Riparbelli.
Journalist Carole Cadwalladr said the panel “is the equivalent of pitting Nigel Farage against Rupert Lowe with a bit of Tommy Robinson thrown in”.
Gawdat, was formerly the chief business officer for Google X – a semi-secret research and development facility founded by Google in 2010 with the mission of pursuing radical “moonshot” technologies.
While, as the BBC noted, Gawdat has warned that AI has its dangers, he has repeatedly called for it to be given control over human society in its entirety.
“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
Gilbert is the senior director of AI and head of the “AI for government” program at the Tony Blair Institute, which has accepted more than £250 million from Donald Trump ally, tech billionaire, and Oracle owner Larry Ellison since 2021.
So all five panelists are pro-AI?
That is unbalanced yeah, whatever you think of Polanski.
It’s getting insane at this point. We can’t just allow special interests to control all of the national conversation.
Polanski is right and for better or worse he is the only public figure calling out the establishment on issues like this.
>“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
To be honest I’m much less worried about what the AI might do than I am about what the people who own it will do with it. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the technology itself, its just its being owned and utilised by the worst people on Earth.
I haven’t watched QT for about 5 years, its obviously being manipulated to make sure specific agendas get promoted.
I agree. You can see a massive difference in how Reform are treated the last year or so. Given so much time on the news, media…they had the same amount of MP’s yet get more coverage Greens, libs, often even more than the Tories. QuestionTime rarely goes a week without a Reform member on but will happily not have any Greens on for months
“Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
I’m 100% up for an Iain M Banks style AI future. That’s the sort of thing all these guys have in mind right?
He’s not wrong, this reeks of ‘I for one welcome out new overlords’ rather than a balanced debate about the dangers. Geoffrey Hinton Yoshua Bengio, Stuart Russel, at least one of them should have been invited to balance this out and talk about the real dangers instead of it being a fluff piece about how great AI is.
>”Many people believe that if AI is ever in full control, it will become an existential risk to humanity. I would argue the opposite,” Gawdat wrote on LinkedIn last month . “I believe there is enough evidence to suggest that when we fully hand over to AI, it may actually become our salvation.”
How is the BBC giving this lunatic a platform?
This guy is a fool. Give it a rest Dave, sorry Zac.
Tbh AI is coming whether people like it or not.
The people who learn to use it will probably still have jobs. The people who don’t risk becoming the human backup systems — like Chernobyl using men when the robots failed.
The real leveller will probably be cost, because the best AI tools will only be affordable to certain companies and individuals at first.
It’s a tv show about AI. Of course the experts are going to be involved in AI.
Why would you put Sharon from Folkestone on there to talk about something she knows nothing about?
Also everytime he says “billionaires” I just hear “cosmopolitan financiers”. Yeuch.
This guy and his tinfoil hat conspiracies. Why does he get airtime?
Rather than being hailed as a wonder for humanity, it’s being lauded by it’s exponents as a way to make even more money regardless of the consequences, hardly surprising folk are worried. ’Shall we help humanity? Nah just me me me thanks’
There is nothing stopping Mr Polanski from staging his own version of Question Time with a stronger panel.
I would suggest that he does so on a platform that is widely viewable
If he gave voices to everyone effected, his ratings would improve and humiliate the BBC
In other news water is wet, sky is blue and the sun is hot. BBC news and editorial is basically a rich right wingers plaything now, facilitated by 14 years of the Tories loading sycophants into senior positions.
Nothing says balanced like getting a complete pro AI guest line up. /s