Questions mount over what an AI 'slowdown' would look like

In the UK, we have heard about plans to roll out the tech more widely within the NHS to improve patient care, and how AI gave the UK economy a much-needed boost over the summer. We are all being encouraged to use it more and more at work, in education and in our personal lives.The industry is a key part of the UK's strategy to drive economic growth. "There is no plan B" a former government adviser told me, so could a slowdown wreck future prospects here in Britain?The AI industry is burning through enormous amounts of money and natural resources and so far, is not creating nearly as much revenue. There are multiple reports suggesting a number of firms adopting the technology are disappointed by it.Economists widely speculate that even the current giants are not all likely to survive and that some kind of "levelling" is coming – also known as a bursting bubble. But those firms which do make it could end up becoming the most powerful mega-corporations the world has ever seen, and that comes with its own issues.OpenAI choosing to halt its march to the stock market could be seen as an epiphany-like moment of taking responsibility for public safety – but it could also be the move of a c...