Avoiding technologies that might "cause or are likely to cause overall harm" is no longer included in Alphabet guidelines.

Just before releasing lower-than-expected profits on Tuesday, the US tech giant said that it has revised its AI ethics standards, which no longer included the warning against exploring technologies that may "cause or are likely to cause overall harm." Demis Hassabis, Google's head of AI, stated that AI should safeguard "national security" and that the rules were being revised in light of a changing environment.

In a blog post justifying the decision, Hassabis and James Manyika, the company's senior vice president for technology and society, stated that the company felt that democracies should lead in AI development that was driven by freedom, equality, and respect for human rights as the competition for leadership in AI grew globally.

"Don't be evil" was Google's original motto; however, it was later reduced to a tagline in 2009 and was left out of Alphabet's code of ethics when the parent company was established in 2015. The quick development of AI has spurred discussion on how to regulate the new technology and mitigate its downsides.

In a Reith speech on the BBC, British computer scientist Stuart Russell urged for a worldwide control system and cautioned against the risks of creating autonomous military systems. Alphabet said that it would invest $75 billion in capital projects over the course of the upcoming year, mostly to expand its infrastructure and AI capabilities.