Strive Masiyiwa Takes Aim at OpenAI? Plus the AI Bubble Question Everyone's Asking: The Week Ahead

As 10 startups hit $1tn in value, Strive Masiyiwa raises red flags about AI ethics and Zimbabwe joins Africa's AI strategy race

The Week Ahead: All About AI

Here are some of the most important stories to watch this week—and it’s all about AI.

• Fear of an AI Bubble Rises

• Strive Masiyiwa Questions the Ethics of Sam Altman’s OpenAI?

• African Countries Launching National AI Policies

Let’s unpack!

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Fear of an AI Bubble Rises

The chart below is from Google Trends, a tool used to show how much interest a topic has over time. As you can see, the topic of an AI bubble has recently gained significant traction globally.

On Thursday, October 16th, the Financial Times led with an article titled “Of Course It’s a Bubble.” The opening sentence sums up the theory:

“Ten loss-making artificial intelligence start-ups have gained close to $1tn in valuation over the past 12 months, an unprecedented increase that adds to fears about an inflating bubble in private markets that could spill over into the wider economy.”

Bubble: A period during which the prices of assets rise far above their intrinsic value, driven largely by excessive investor enthusiasm, speculation, and herd behavior rather than fundamental economic factors.

Now, why is this a concern, and what does it have to do with you?

Well, Citigroup estimates that nearly half of the S&P 500 has medium-to-high AI exposure. In other words, if AI is a bubble and it bursts, your investments are likely to take a hit.

But here’s one thing I’ve found about bubbles: they have a remarkable way of lasting longer than you anticipate. Below is a chart based on data from Risk Concern showing how long bubbles typically last.

So perhaps we’re already in a bubble, but there’s still some time to go, especially in Africa, where AI is just getting started.

Speaking of AI and Africa, Dr Strive Masiyiwa comes to mind, and he made some really interesting comments last week.

Strive Masiyiwa Questions the Ethics of Sam Altman’s OpenAI?

In a Facebook post on Thursday, Econet Founder and Chairman Dr Strive Masiyiwa appeared to take aim at Sam Altman’s OpenAI. Here are a few direct quotes from the post:

“Being able to do something does not mean you should do it. Do the right thing, even whilst no one is watching…

…Some people think it is okay to proceed, provided it’s not against the law. But what if the law lags behind [has not yet caught up to new products], and no one but you knows the potential harm? Then what?

I found myself reflecting on this many times recently. For example, a major model released a video generating platform that can be used to make video clips using image inputs of [real] people without their permission. Now the Internet is flooded with the stuff. Whilst high-profile people like me will be allowed to intervene and get them removed, or to ‘opt out’… what about ordinary people?”

Now, he doesn’t directly call out OpenAI in this post, but all the clues point to OpenAI’s new Sora platform, which was released recently and has faced similar criticism.

Why is this a big deal? Dr Masiyiwa is generally a big advocate for AI, but he has also built his brand by taking ethical stances on specific issues.

To make a public statement of this nature may indicate he has seen a level of recklessness that is going on in the AI arms race that could prove very dangerous.

This would not be surprising. “Tech Bros” have been known to do anything to get ahead, even if it means breaking rules along the way.

After all, even to this day, Elon Musk contends that Sam Altman lied to him about OpenAI, which has been trying to convert from a non-profit to a for-profit enterprise.

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African Countries Launching National AI Policies—Zimbabwe Being the Latest

Last week, Zimbabwe approved its First National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, joining the list of other countries to have launched national AI strategies. As of July, there were only 16 African countries with national AI strategies.

Since AI is such a new field, there are likely to be lots of opportunities to build around these policies, as everything is still so new to everyone. There is also likely to be a lot of investment, and so getting familiar with what is in these strategies early can give you an edge.

Thanks for reading. We will connect again this week, where we will be unpacking Capitec’s financial results.

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