The annual World Economic Forum in Davos (World Economic Forum – WEF) will start next week. Before this WEF event – both in 2024 and 2025, and over the next decade.
It must be admitted that the conclusions drawn from reading it may be a bit of a surprise to some. 1,400 WEF analysts concluded that the greatest threat to the world in the next two years is not war (even the one taking place on our eastern border), terrorism or Donald Trump’s potential return to power. In their opinion, the greatest risk factor is disinformation supported by the dynamic development of artificial intelligence.
Easy-to-use interfaces that no longer require niche skills and large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) models have led to an explosion of fake news and so-called ‘synthetic’ content – from sophisticated voice cloning to fake websites
– emphasizes the WEF in its report.
WEF report – the greatest risks facing the world photo: WEF
The problem of disinformation, fake news and deepfakes is important because, as the WEF notes, over the next two years, almost 3 billion people will go to the polls around the world, including residents of the USA, India, Great Britain, Mexico and Indonesia.
The emergence of disinformation in these electoral processes could seriously destabilize the actual and perceived legitimacy of newly elected governments, which in turn raises the risk of political unrest, violence and terrorism. Their effect may be the long-term erosion of democratic processes
– warns WEF.
The second greatest threat to the world in the coming years are extreme weather phenomena, with particular emphasis on El Nino. It is a weather and ocean phenomenon that causes above-average temperatures on the water surface in the equatorial zone of the Pacific Ocean.
Polarization of society was ranked third among risk factors, and threats related to cybersecurity were ranked fourth. Interestingly, armed conflicts between countries ranked only in fifth place.
Over the next two years, the war in Ukraine may sporadically alternate between intensifying and refreezing. Despite sanctions, Russia continues to profit from energy sales and goods exports – and these profits could increase if the conflict in the Middle East deepens.
– explains WEF.
“An unstable global order characterized by polarizing narratives and insecurity, worsening effects of extreme weather events and economic uncertainty are increasing the spread of threats – including disinformation – says Saadia Zahidi, managing director of the World Economic Forum.
The greatest threats to the world in the next decade? Atmosphere, stupid
When it comes to the greatest threats to the world over the next decade, WEF experts agree that they are primarily related to the climate. Environmental threats took as many as the top four places in the ranking. The first one included extreme weather events, and the next ones – critical climate change, declines in biodiversity and scarcity of natural resources.
“It is a very bleak prospect, but it is not a prediction of the future. It is still largely in our hands,” concludes the report by Saadia Zahidi.
The document “The Global Risks Report” was prepared by the World Economic Forum and Zurich Insurance, based on a survey conducted among 1,400 experts.
Source: Gazeta
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