An arms race for artificial intelligence (AI) supremacy, triggered by recent panic over Chinese chatbot DeepSeek, risks amplifying the existential dangers of superintelligence, according to one of the “godfathers” of AI.

Canadian machine learning pioneer Yoshua Bengio, author of the first International AI Safety Report to be presented at an international AI summit in Paris next week, warns unchecked investment in computational power for AI without oversight is dangerous.

“The effort is going into who’s going to win the race, rather than how do we make sure we are not going to build something that blows up in our face,” Mr Bengio says.

He warns that military and economic races “result in cutting corners on ethics, cutting corners on responsibility and on safety. It’s unavoidable”.

Mr Bengio worked on neural networks and machine learning, the software architecture that underpins modern AI models.

He is in London, along with other AI pioneers to receive the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, the most prestigious global award for engineering, in recognition of AI and its potential.

He’s enthusiastic about its benefits for society, but the pivot away from AI regulation by Donald Trump‘s White House and frantic competition among big tech companies for more powerful AI models is a worrying shift.

‘Superhuman systems becoming more powerful’

“We are building systems that are more and more powerful; becoming superhuman in some dimensions,” he says.

“As these systems become more powerful, they also become extraordinarily more valuable, economically speaking.

“So the magnitude of, ‘wow, this is going to make me a lot of money’ is motivating a lot of people. And of course, when you want to sell products, you don’t want to talk about the risks.”

But not all the “godfathers” of AI are so concerned.

Take Yann LeCun, Meta’s chief AI scientist, also in London to share in the QEPrize.

“We have been deluded into thinking that large language models are intelligent, but really, they’re not,” he says.

“We don’t have machines that are nearly as smart as a house cat, in terms of understanding the physical world.”

Within three to five years, Mr LeCun predicts, AI will have some aspects of human-level intelligence. Robots, for example, that can perform tasks they’ve not been programmed or trained to do.

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But, he argues, rather than make the world less safe, open-source AI models such as DeepSeek – a chatbot developed by a Chinese company that rivals the best of America’s big tech with a tenth of the computing power – demonstrates no one will dominate for long.

“If the US decides to clam up when it comes to AI for geopolitical reasons, or, commercial reasons, then you’ll have innovation someplace else in the world. DeepSeek showed that,” he says.

The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering prize is awarded each year to engineers whose discoveries have, or promise to have, the greatest impact on the world.

Previous recipients include the pioneers of photovoltaic cells in solar panels, wind turbine technology and neodymium magnets found in hard drives, and electric motors.

Science minister Lord Vallance, who chairs the QEPrize foundation, says he is alert to the potential risks of AI.

Organisations such as the UK’s new AI Safety Institute are designed to foresee and prevent the potential harms AI “human-like” intelligence might bring.

But he is less concerned about one nation or company having a monopoly on AI.

“I think what we’ve seen in the last few weeks is it’s much more likely that we’re going to have many companies in this space, and the idea of single-point dominance is rather unlikely,” he says.

The US will take over Gaza and “own it”, Donald Trump has said.

Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, he said the two million Palestinian people living in the territory, which he described as a “demolition site”, would go to “various domains”.

Asked about deploying US troops to fill a potential security vacuum, the president replied: “We’ll do what is necessary.”

Expanding on plans for the territory, he said the US would “develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs” and turn it into “something the entire Middle East can be very proud of”.

The president reiterated his suggestion from 25 January that Palestinians could be relocated to Egypt and Jordan – something both countries, other Arab nations including Saudi Arabia, and Palestinian leaders, have rejected.

Palestinians in Gaza could go to countries beyond Jordan and Egypt too, he said.

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Asked whether he thought Egypt and Jordan would accept Palestinians, he said he believed they would.

But, he added: “I hope we could do something where they wouldn’t want to go back. Who would want to go back?

“They’ve experienced nothing but death and destruction.”

Saudi Arabia immediately responded, stressing its rejection of attempts to displace Palestinians from Gaza, and insisted it would not establish relations with Israel without a Palestinian state.

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Asked on what authority the US could take control of Gaza, Mr Trump told reporters he sees a “long term ownership position” which would, he claimed, bring stability to that part of the Middle East.

“This was not a decision made lightly,” he said.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs.”

It would be the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

He continued: “I’ve studied it. I’ve studied this very closely over a lot of months, and I’ve seen it from every different angle.”

He does not believe Palestinians should return to Gaza because it is a “guarantee that they’re going to end up dying”.

He talked about finding a “beautiful area to resettle people, permanently, in nice homes where they can be happy and not be shot and not be killed and not be knifed to death like what’s happening in Gaza”.

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The war, triggered by Hamas carrying out a massacre of 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage during the 7 October 2023 attacks in Israel, has temporarily stopped since the long-sought ceasefire deal came into effect on 19 January.

More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Hamas’s attack, according to local authorities.

Mr Netanyahu, the first world leader to meet Mr Trump since the pro-Israel president’s return to the White House, sat beside the Republican as he answered questions from the press.

‘Plans change with time’

The US president hinted he would seek an independent Palestinian state as part of a broader two-state solution to the decades-long Israel-Palestine conflict.

“Well, a lot of plans change with time,” he told reporters when he was asked if he was still committed to a plan similar to the one he spelled out in 2020 that described a possible Palestinian state.

That plan proposed a series of Palestinian enclaves surrounded by an enlarged Israel, did not have the Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem, but suggested a Palestinian capital on the outskirts of the city.

“A lot of death has occurred since I left and now came back. Now we are faced with a situation that’s different – in some ways better and in some ways worse. But we are faced with a very complex and difficult situation that we’ll solve,” he said.

On the likelihood of getting a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Mr Trump said: “We are dealing with a lot of people, and we have steps to go yet, as you know, and maybe those steps go forward, and maybe they don’t.

“We’re dealing with a very complex group of people, situation and people, but we have the right man. We have the right leader of Israel. He’s done a great job.”

Mr Trump was also asked whether he should get the Nobel Peace Prize.

He said: “They will never give me a Nobel Peace Prize. It’s too bad. I deserve it, but they will never give it to me.”

A 15-year-old boy has been charged with murder after a teenager was stabbed to death at a school in Sheffield.

Harvey Willgoose, 15, died after being attacked at All Saints Catholic High School on Monday.

Police said he suffered “serious injuries” and despite the efforts of medics, died a short time after emergency services arrived.

Chris Hartley, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service Yorkshire and Humberside, said: “We have authorised South Yorkshire Police to charge a 15-year-old with murder in relation to the death of Harvey Willgoose, 15, at All Saints Catholic High School on 3 February.

“He has also been charged with possession of a bladed article and one count of affray.”

The boy will appear at Sheffield Youth Court later on Wednesday.

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In a statement released by police, Harvey’s family said their lives would “never be the same again” and they were “utterly heartbroken”.

“We have lost a beloved son, brother, grandson, cousin, nephew and most importantly, a best friend to all,” they said.

“Harvey will be forever known for being a caring, loving and funny young man. At this difficult time we ask you to please respect our privacy as we grieve as a family.”

Paying tribute, Harvey’s sister Sophie Willgoose said: “My heart is broken into a million pieces.”

She posted on Facebook: “I love you so much Harvey… Hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight cos I wish I could.”

All Saints Catholic High School described Harvey as an “immensely popular” student who had “a smile that would light up the room”.

“We are all struggling to process what has happened and our thoughts and prayers are with Harvey’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time,” it said.