‘Jobs disappearing’: Internet agrees with Bill Maher as he claims threat from AI is ‘scarier’ than TikTok

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Amid the US House passing a bill to potentially ban TikTok, Bill Maher swiftly shared his views on the matter during the latest episode of HBO’s 'Real Time with Bill Maher'.

Maher humorously quipped about China's role in manufacturing. He jested, “China, you know what, you can manufacture everything else that we use, but keeping our kids stupid, that’s our job.”

TikTok ban bill garners bipartisan support

The bill, which was passed with a vote of 352-65 in the House, seeks to enforce a nationwide ban on the popular video app if its China-based owner, ByteDance, fails to divest.

Lawmakers cite national security concerns due to the company’s Chinese ownership structure. President Joe Biden has pledged to sign the bill if it clears the Senate.

Later in the show, Maher revisited the topic during a discussion with Republican Rep Nancy Mace and Democratic Rep Ro Khanna, expressing his belief that there are more pressing issues in the country than TikTok. Both Khanna and Mace had voted against the bill.

Maher questioned the opposition to the bill, pondering the common ground among those against it.

“Explain to me why the people who are lining up against the bill and against getting it signed, you know, are saying, ‘No, we can keep TikTok Chinese.’ What is the common ground there?” Maher asked.

“The common ground is the First Amendment in free speech,” Khanna responded. “I mean, it shows how out of touch Congress is that of all the issues in the country, the thing we can get done in three days is ban TikTok. That is the issue?”

“It’s a First Amendment issue. I think it’s potentially a Fifth Amendment issue," Mace agreed. "It’s not the government’s role to ban apps from the App stores and websites.”

Bill Maher sounds alarm over AI

While Maher acknowledged his support for free speech, he shifted the focus to what he considers a more critical issue- artificial intelligence (AI).

Expressing concern about the rise of AI entrepreneurs potentially becoming trillionaires, Maher highlighted warnings from the US State Department about AI posing an extinction-level threat to humanity.

He criticized the lack of precautions taken before AI's widespread implementation, likening it to an arms race with humanity as the guinea pigs.

Maher said, “I’m so much more concerned about AI. I mean, I heard you [Khanna] say this week that you think the first trillionaire in this country is going to be an AI entrepreneur. That to me is scarier than any of this, the idea of a trillionaire and also coming from AI."

"And by the way, the US State Department said this week, worst-case scenario, it [AI] poses an extinction-level threat to the human species.”

He continued, “You know, we see all these glitches in it and it doesn’t pause us at all. It’s like an arms race and we’re the guinea pigs. And shouldn’t the tech bros have been made to work out the bugs before they unleashed it on humanity? A little bit?”

Internet voices agreement and concern over Maher's AI warning

Social media users chimed in on Bill Maher's warning about the dangers of artificial intelligence

One user wrote, "For once I agree with him."

Another added, "They're both issues that need to be addressed."

 One user commented, "I don't think anyone really cares until they get f***ed over by it.

One said, "All technology should be of concern to a world with 8 billion mouths to feed that's quadrupling by the next decade while jobs are disappearing due to technology."

One user wrote, "Correct."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.