AGI could be more transformative than the Industrial Revolution: Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis

Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is now “on the horizon” and could be more transformative than the Industrial Revolution, Demis Hassabis, co-founder and CEO of Google DeepMind, said on the fourth day of the India AI Impact Summit.

Describing the moment as one of the most consequential in human history, Hassabis said AGI could have “ten times the impact of the Industrial Revolution, probably at ten times the speed of anything else”. However, he added, “it’s still to be written how we can make that beneficial for the whole world”.

Hassabis said the Summit, which began in the UK, has evolved into “a very important and critical point of international dialogue and cooperation for the future of AI.”


Reflecting on the early days of AI research, Hassabis said, “When we started working on AI, no one was working on it. It was just a dream.” He called it “incredible” that AI has moved from those beginnings to becoming a central global conversation.

The DeepMind CEO reiterated his belief that AI would be “one of the most important and beneficial technology developments,” particularly in advancing science. AI, he said, would be “the ultimate tool in augmenting scientific discoveries” and could help answer questions that have remained unresolved for thousands of years. Teams at DeepMind are already applying AI to medicine, materials science, physics and mathematics, he noted.

Hassabis said foundational models and large language models are becoming more capable “almost week by week”. While the economic opportunity is significant, he urged humility. “We don’t have all the answers yet and how this technology is going to develop and be put out into the world,” he emphasised, calling for a scientific and careful approach.

The tech leader also praised India’s AI ecosystem after spending time in Bengaluru ahead of the Summit. He said research teams in India are contributing to efficient models, continual learning and multilingual capabilities used in products worldwide, calling the country “a powerhouse for AI across the globe.”

Hassabis highlighted his company's partnerships in India, including with Reliance Jio, to bring Gemini to users. “We are especially proud of our deep partnership to bring intelligence to everyone in India with Gemini,” he said.

Google DeepMind has also announced a major collaboration with the Government of India under its global national partnerships programme, which is aimed at expanding access to cutting-edge artificial intelligence for national priorities. As part of the initiative, the company will partner with 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs, bringing AI-powered tools to more than 10,000 schools and reaching approximately 11 million students.

“This can’t be just left to technologists,” Hassabis added, stressing the need for international dialogue. “If we get this right, we can usher in a new golden era of scientific discovery and research for everyone in the world.”