The Blubber

Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis has predicted that humanity could begin colonizing the galaxy as early as 2030, with artificial intelligence (AI) acting as the primary catalyst behind this transformation. Hassabis, who won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, believes that AI will supercharge human productivity and propel us toward interstellar exploration.

Speaking to WIRED, Hassabis described the near future as a “golden era” powered by the emergence of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)—AI that can perform at or above human-level capacity across a wide range of tasks.

“If everything goes well, then we should be in an era of radical abundance, a kind of golden era,” Hassabis said. “AGI can solve what I call root-node problems in the world—curing terrible diseases, much healthier and longer lifespans, finding new energy sources.”

He added,

“If that all happens, then it should be an era of maximum human flourishing, where we travel to the stars and colonise the galaxy. I think that will begin to happen in 2030.”

When asked whether this future of abundance might still result in inequality—much like today’s distribution of wealth and resources—Hassabis argued that AI will reshape the playing field, making it feel less like a zero-sum game.

“AI will make things feel like a non-zero-sum game,” he explained.

AGI and Its Risks

Although Hassabis is optimistic about AGI’s potential, he has also spoken candidly about his concerns. He’s previously warned that society may not be prepared for what’s coming.

“It’s a sort of probability distribution. But it’s coming—[AGI] is coming very soon either way, and I’m not sure society’s quite ready for that yet,” Hassabis said.
“We need to think that through, and also consider issues around the controllability of these systems and access to them—ensuring everything unfolds safely.”