Wired - AI
The Doomsday Clock has been set to 85 seconds to midnight, its closest point ever, by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. This reflects escalating threats from nuclear weapons, AI, biosecurity concerns, and the climate crisis, exacerbated by increased nationalism among major powers.
AI 生成摘要
原子科學家公報將末日之鐘的時針撥至午夜前85秒，創下歷史新近。這反映了核武、人工智慧、生物安全憂慮及氣候危機等日益嚴峻的威脅，且主要國家日益加劇的民族主義更為此增添了風險。
The Doomsday Clock has just been set to 85 seconds to midnight. Nearly 80 years after its creation, this time represents the closest the clock has ever been to midnight. This was reported by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ Science and Security Board (SABS), the expert council that annually updates the clock's hands. This year, the group highlighted the growing threat of nuclear weapons, disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, multiple concerns about biosecurity, and the persistent climate crisis .
The Doomsday Clock was created in 1947, during the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. It is, in essence, a symbolic representation of how close humanity is to the destruction of the world, with midnight symbolizing the moment when humanity will have rendered the Earth uninhabitable. Last year, the hands were moved to 89 seconds to midnight, from the 90 seconds set in 2023 and 2024, due to insufficient progress in addressing or regulating global challenges like nuclear risk, the climate crisis, biological threats, disruptive technologies, and disinformation. “Every second of delay in reversing course,” SABS members reported, “increases the likelihood of a global disaster.”
Instead of heeding this warning, however, the United States, Russia, China, and other major countries have become even more aggressive and nationalistic this year. “The dangerous trends in nuclear risk, climate change, disruptive technologies like AI, and biosecurity are accompanied by another frightening development: the rise of nationalistic autocracies in countries around the world,” said SABS president Daniel Holz in a statement. “Our greatest challenges require international trust and cooperation, and a world splintering into ‘us versus them’ will leave all of humanity more vulnerable.”
As global threats worsen, the SABS report highlights a lack of leadership. “Hard-won global understandings are collapsing, accelerating a winner-takes-all great power competition and undermining the international cooperation critical to reducing the risks of nuclear war, climate change, the misuse of biotechnology, the potential threat of artificial intelligence, and other apocalyptic dangers,” the organization explained in a press release. “Far too many leaders have grown complacent and indifferent, in many cases adopting rhetoric and policies that accelerate rather than mitigate these existential risks.”
While it is a reminder of the world's vulnerability as it nears the point of no return, the Doomsday Clock also symbolizes that there is still time to act, to pull humanity back from the brink. The United States and Russia, for example, could resume discussions on limiting their nuclear arsenals, while through multilateral agreements and national regulations, appropriate measures can be taken to reduce the possibility of artificial intelligence being used to create biological threats. The US Congress could provide incentives and investments that enable a rapid reduction in the use of fossil fuels, while the United States, Russia, and China could initiate talks to develop guidelines on integrating artificial intelligence into their militaries, particularly nuclear command and control systems.
“National leaders, particularly those of the United States, Russia, and China, must take the lead in finding a way out of the abyss,” the experts concluded. “Citizens must insist that they do so.”
This story was originally published in WIRED Italia and has been translated from Italian.
In your inbox: Maxwell Zeff's dispatch from the heart of AI
The best EVs coming in 2026
Big Story: Your first humanoid coworker will be Chinese
What to do if ICE invades your neighborhood
Special edition: You’re already living in the Chinese century
© 2026 Condé Nast. All rights reserved. WIRED may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. Ad Choices