Geoof Ralston, the former president of Y Combinator, has opened a OMNI! Second, he established the Safe Artificial Intelligence Fund (SAIF) to make early stage investments in startups focused on making AI more safe, secure and responsibly deployed. Ralston’s move comes amid growing concern over the possible harms of artificial intelligence. That’s particularly true when it comes to the weaponization of AI.
New projects targeting “weapons safety systems” would be eligible for SAIF funding. These defensive systems will be better equipped to detect or prevent attacks from AI based weapons. Debate over autonomous weapons is moving so quickly. Today, some developers advocate that these systems should be able to function with zero human intervention of any kind. Yet Ralston continues to be careful about this idea, stressing the need for human control.
“I intend to fund startups whose primary objective is safe AI – as I have (very broadly) defined it,” Ralston stated, underpinning his commitment to fostering responsible AI development. He intends to issue $100,000 checks to organizations that accept them as an investment with guaranteed returns. As introduced, the overall cap for the fund is $10 million.
Ralston put the spotlight on the huge number of AI projects going on. So he was really happy to see that the majority of these initiatives are using technology to address problems, improve efficiencies, and develop new capabilities. He did make it clear that he would not support completely autonomous weapons that make life and death decisions, which are fraught with ethical and safety implications.
SAIF has a unique funding model, based on the “safe” investment model created by Y Combinator. This approach allows for early-stage investments while postponing pricing. Ralston hopes to see a focus on practical AI solutions developed with safety measures inherently integrated. Examples of such tools include advanced AI forecasting systems and AI-enabled business negotiation tools that safeguard corporate secrets from external exposure.
Ralston’s intention is to mentor founders, much as he did YC. In addition to his guidance though, he’s committed to providing financial support to go along with that direction. He shared his enthusiasm about helping emerging startups prepare to apply to Y Combinator. More importantly, he hopes to hook them up with his large network of investors.
“There are certainly uses of AI which would (will) be unsafe: using the technology to create bioweapons, to manage conventional weapons without a human in the loop, etc.,” Ralston remarked, emphasizing his commitment to investing in responsible AI solutions.
In early fall of 2022, Ralston formally departed Y Combinator after a successful three-year run at the helm. Garry Tan became the new president after his exit. Ralston is looking to impact the development of AI technologies going forward with SAIF. He advocates for rigorous safety and ethical review of new initiatives.
