Dear reader,
At this point, you practically need an algorithm to keep track of Geoffrey Hinton’s many accolades: the godfather of artificial intelligence, a former vice-president and engineering fellow at Google, one of Time’s 100 people of the year, a University of Toronto computer science professor, and—even closer to home—this magazine’s pick for the most influential Torontonian of 2023.
On Tuesday, Hinton received his most prestigious honour to date: the Nobel Prize in physics, in recognition of his world-altering contributions to the field of machine learning. Hinton was characteristically humble about the award, telling reporters from a “cheap hotel in California” that he was “flabbergasted” to learn the news.
For all his trailblazing, Hinton barely gives a second thought to titles or acclaim. His brazenness became apparent last year, when he resigned from Google and warned the world about the existential threat AI poses to humanity. Hinton spoke with Toronto Life writer Luc Rinaldi in the aftermath of sounding the alarm on his life’s work. “I don’t really care about my legacy,” he said. “The best thing you can do with a good reputation is squander it, because you can’t take it with you when you’re dead.”
For more great long-reads from Toronto Life, subscribe to our print edition here.
