Demis Hassabis, DeepMind CEO
Proposes the "Einstein Test" as a benchmark for AGI
Demis Hassabis, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Google DeepMind, has proposed criteria for defining artificial general intelligence (AGI), including what he calls the "Einstein Test."
Hassabis Demis, CEO of Google DeepMind, is speaking at the India Artificial Intelligence (AI) Impact Summit 2026 held in New Delhi, India, from the 16th to the 20th (local time). YouTube screen capture
CEO Hassabis said at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, held in New Delhi, India from February 16 to 20 (local time), "My definition of AGI has never changed," adding, "AGI is a system that can deploy the full range of cognitive abilities that humans possess."
Considering the remarkable properties of the human brain, this means that all AI systems should be able to surpass the structure of this intelligence. CEO Hassabis pointed out, "Although today's AI systems are impressive in how they operate, they still fail to demonstrate consistent generality across all domains, sometimes being unable to solve even simple math problems."
As an indicator of true AGI, CEO Hassabis proposed the "Einstein Test." He said, "The test I have in mind is to train an AI system only on knowledge available up to 1911 and then see whether it can independently derive a physical breakthrough like the theory of general relativity, as Einstein did in 1915," adding, "If that is possible, that would be AGI."
He also predicted that AGI is highly likely to emerge sometime after 2030. In particular, CEO Hassabis assessed that "this year is another decisive moment in the history of AI."
In his speech at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, CEO Hassabis stressed, "AGI has the potential to reshape the world faster than any technological shift in the past." He said, "If we were to quantify the changes that the advent of AGI will bring, they would unfold at a pace ten times faster and with an impact ten times greater than the Industrial Revolution," and predicted, "Those changes will play out not over a century, but in just ten years."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
