Buffet warns of AI fraud, whose power compares to that of nuclear weapons – Markets

Warren Buffet said this Saturday that the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for fraud could be the next big growth industry and compared this technology to nuclear weapons.

At the general meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the holding company he leads, the mega-investor reported this Saturday the discomfort he felt after seeing an image of himself generated through AI. Although he did not explicitly mention whether it was a “deepfake” video, that appears to have been the case.

“If we can reproduce images that we cannot distinguish from the real ones in which someone tells us ‘I need money’ as if it were [por exemplo] a son of ours, we see the potential to deceive people.” “Fraud has always been part of the American scene and will be the fastest growing industry,” he said.

“We let the genie out of the lamp when we developed nuclear weapons and that genie has done terrible things. That’s very scary. And it’s similar with AI,” he warned.

Operating result grows but profit falls

Warren Buffet’s holding company recorded, in the first quarter of the year, an increase of almost 40% in operating income to US$11.2 billion, according to several North American newspapers. However, the result for the quarter fell to US$12.7 billion, around three times less than the US$35.5 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Berkshire Hathaway improved liquidity to $189 billion at the end of March, a value that compares with $167 billion in December.

The company is holding a general shareholders meeting this Saturday, the first without Charlie Munger, the company’s long-time vice-chairman. Munger passed away last year at the age of 99.

Between January and March, the company reduced its stake in Apple for the second consecutive quarter. After selling more than 100 million shares in the technology company at the end of 2023, the strategy continued by selling another 10 million in 2024.

The rationale for the operation, Warren Buffet explained, is related to tax reasons, and not due to any long-term valuation of the stock. The “mega-investor” suggested that the operation could be linked to a possible rise in interest rates to finance the North American deficit.

“I don’t mind writing that check at all. And with everything that America has done for all of you, you shouldn’t mind us doing it,” he said, addressing the shareholders gathered in the state of Nebraska.

Buffet also revealed that the company is looking at the renewable energy sector but warned that the industry needs more time to develop.

“Some things take time,” he said. “We can’t create a baby in a month by getting nine women pregnant,” she quipped.