Microsoft boss fears AI is 'hallucinating' and needs fixing

Artificial intelligence is here to stay, and while the advancements have helped many people across the world, it's still got a long way to go.

Microsoft vice president Vik Singh recently revealed that AI doesn't have the ability to ask for help when it doesn't know the answer or know what to do.

Singh joined Microsoft back in January and has since taken over as the head of teams developing Microsoft's AI assistant, Copilot, specialising in accounting, sales and online services.

"Just to be really frank, the thing that’s really missing today is that a model doesn’t raise its hands and say 'Hey, I’m not sure, I need help,'" he told AFP.

Despite making major progress across AI applications including ChatGPT, it still reportedly creates its own answers or "hallucinates," causing concern for top tech leaders.

Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, claimed there's an increase in frustrated customers from Microsoft's Copilot.

Singh insisted to the publication that "really smart people" were on the case and looking at ways for a chatbot to confess "when it doesn't know the right answer and to ask for help".

One method, that Singh suggests would save "tons of money," is for the bot to turn to a human in 50 per cent of cases to ensure answers are efficient.

"Every time a new request comes in, they spend $8 to have a customer service rep answer it, so there are real savings to be had, and it’s also a better experience for the customer because they get a faster response," he explained.

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