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Nobel Prize winner predicts when humanity ends - it's closer than you think

US theoretical physicist David Gross has shared a bleak outlook for humanity, highlighting the prospect of nuclear war and the inexorable rise of artificial intelligence

[(Original Caption) Badger, part of Operation Upshot-Knothole, was a 23 kiloton tower shot fired April 18, 1953 at the Nevada Test Site. (Photo by CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)]

A physicist has shared a stark prediction for the year humanity could end(Image: Historical, Corbis via Getty Images)

A Nobel Prize-winning physicist has delivered a chilling forecast for when humanity might face extinction and it is much closer than most would anticipate. David Gross is an American theoretical physicist and string theorist who, in 2004, together with Frank Wilczek and Hugh David Politzer, received the Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering asymptotic freedom.

In his evaluation, David who recently received the $3 million (approximately 2,220,000) Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics highlighted the dangers presented by nuclear conflict and the unstoppable rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

During a recent discussion about physics, David was asked whether humanity would be closer to achieving a unified theory within 50 years. His answer was grim.

He told LiveScience: "Currently, I spend part of my time trying to tell people ... that the chances of you living 50 [more] years are very small. Due to the danger of nuclear war, you have about 35 years."

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David Gross suggested that the end could come as soon as 2061(Image: Getty)

David conceded that this was a "crude estimate", but suggested that global catastrophe could occur as soon as 2061. He stressed the risks associated with a world containing "nine nuclear powers" and "three super nuclear powers".

He told LiveScience: "Even after the Cold War ended, (when) we had strategic arms control treaties, all of which have disappeared, there were estimates there was a 1 per cent chance of nuclear war (each year).

"Things have gotten so much worse in the last 30 years, as you can see every time you read the newspaper. I feel it's not a rigorous estimate, that the chances are more likely 2 per cent. So that's a 1-in-50 chance every year.

"The expected lifetime, in the case of 2 per cent (per year), is about 35 years."

When asked what could be done to mitigate the risk, David emphasised the need for international dialogue, warning that the deterioration of nuclear treaties has escalated global instability.

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David also warned about the dangers posed by technology(Image: Getty)

He pointed to ongoing geopolitical conflicts, including the war between Russia and Ukraine, as well as tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, in addition to longstanding tensions between India and Pakistan.

He also observed that managing three nuclear superpowers is "infinitely more complicated" than dealing with two.

David further warned about the risks posed by emerging technologies, arguing that international norms are breaking down while weapons systems are becoming increasingly advanced and unpredictable.

In another troubling scenario, he suggested that automation and even AI could soon be placed in control of critical military systems. He cautioned that the speed at which AI operates could create dangerous situations, particularly when rapid decision-making is required.

He described a hypothetical scenario in which a leader might have just 20 minutes to decide whether to launch a nuclear strike, raising concerns that military officials could consider it "wiser" to delegate such decisions to AI systems.

However, he warned that those familiar with AI understand it can "hallucinate" and produce unreliable outputs.

In a final reflection on nuclear weapons, Gross emphasised that they are a human creation and therefore something humanity ultimately has the power to eliminate.

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