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Axios: Some AI dangers are already real, DeepMind's Hassabis says (Dec 2025)
webCredibility Rating
3/5
Good(3)Good quality. Reputable source with community review or editorial standards, but less rigorous than peer-reviewed venues.
Rating inherited from publication venue: Axios
A brief news report from December 2025 capturing Demis Hassabis's public statements on near-term AI risks and p(doom); useful as a primary source for tracking how leading AI lab heads communicate risk publicly.
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Importance: 42/100news articlenews
Summary
Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, speaking at Axios' AI+ Summit in December 2025, stated that some AI-enabled dangers—particularly cyberattacks on critical infrastructure like energy and water systems—are already occurring. He assessed his personal p(doom) as 'non-zero' and emphasized the need to seriously mitigate catastrophic AI risks. Hassabis also reiterated his prediction that AGI could arrive by 2030.
Key Points
- •Hassabis warns that AI-enabled cyberattacks on energy and water infrastructure are 'almost already happening now,' even without highly sophisticated AI.
- •He describes his personal p(doom) estimate as 'non-zero,' calling catastrophic AI outcomes worth 'very seriously considering and mitigating against.'
- •Hassabis reaffirmed his May 2025 prediction that AGI meeting or exceeding human capabilities could arrive by 2030.
- •Google DeepMind's heavy focus on cybersecurity is partly motivated by defending against AI-enabled infrastructure attacks.
- •The article highlights the dual-use reality of AI: broadly beneficial societal change alongside exploitation by bad actors.
Cited by 1 page
| Page | Type | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| Demis Hassabis | Person | 45.0 |
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Dec 4, 2025 \- [Technology](https://www.axios.com/technology)
# Exclusive: Some AI dangers are already real, DeepMind's Hassabis says
- [Ben Berkowitz](https://www.axios.com/authors/bberkowitz)
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DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis. Photo: Chris Constantine on behalf of Axios
Some of the biggest dangers of AI, like attacks on infrastructure, are already real and need to be guarded against, Google DeepMind CEO [Demis Hassabis](https://www.axios.com/2024/10/21/ai-deepmind-ceo-demis-hassabis) said at [Axios' AI+ Summit](https://www.axios.com/2025/11/24/watch-axios-live-event-ai-summit-sanfrancisco-2025) in San Francisco Thursday.
**Why it matters:** The race to develop AI is changing society in real time, generally for good — but [bad actors](https://www.axios.com/2025/12/04/nikesh-arora-ai-cybersecurity-trends) are taking advantage, too.
**The big picture:** Hassabis in May [had predicted](https://www.axios.com/2025/05/21/google-sergey-brin-demis-hassabis-agi-2030) AI that meets or exceeds human capabilities — artificial general
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