2024 Doomsday Clock Statement: It is still 90 seconds to midnight
Posted: 25th January 2024
SCIENCE AND SECURITY BOARD
2024 Doomsday Clock Statement: It is still 90 seconds to midnight
“Ominous trends continue to point the world toward global catastrophe.” Read the full Doomsday Clock statement here, and the individual issue spotlights from the Bulletin’s Science and Security Board below.
An undiminished nuclear threat and a new arms race
“The last year was characterized by fraught relations among the world’s great powers, who were engaged in vigorous nuclear modernization programs as the nuclear arms control regime continued to collapse.” Read more.
The mixed outlook for climate action
“The myriad climate impacts seen around the world in 2023—including massive wildfires, large-scale flooding, and prolonged heat waves—and the continued rise of greenhouse gas emissions are cause for much concern.” Read more.
The expanding scope of biological threats
“The revolution in the life sciences and associated technologies continues to accelerate and expand in scope, enabling an increasing number of individuals, in groups and alone, to pose threats arising from both accidental and deliberate misuse.” Read more.
AI and other disruptive technologies to watch
“The sophistication of text generators based on large language models, such as GPT-4, led some respected experts to express concern about possible existential risks arising from further rapid advancements in the field. This point is highly contested, with other experts arguing that the potential for AI-related existential risk is highly speculative and distracts from real and immediate non-existential risks that AI poses today.” Read more.
Science on Screen at the Gene Siskel Film Center
For Chicago-based Bulletin readers: join us for a series of screenings including Godzilla, Don’t Look Up, Contagion, and War Games.
Watch films with experts and discuss the end times, and how we can avoid them. Running February 9th – 12th.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The hands of the Doomsday Clock again point to a world in a precarious state [...] Global leaders must set aside differences and meet the urgency of this moment with boldness and long-view leadership that prioritises cooperation and goes beyond short term interests.”
—Juan Manuel Santos, Nobel Peace Prize recipient and former president of Colombia
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