Kristin Bauer Van Straten Criticizes Eric Schmidt’s AI Predictions As The ‘Dumbest Timeline’
True Blood actress expresses concern about AI's rapid development and potential to outpace humanity
Pratibha holds a master's degree in English from Madras University. A bookworm from a young age, she devours books and digital humanities to nourish her writing projects. Pratibha began her writing career in 2018 and has experience writing formal, informal, and technical content.
Read full bio of Pratibha
Image: Instagram
Kristin Bauer van Straten, best known for her role as vampire Pam in “True Blood,” has voiced strong concerns about artificial intelligence development, responding to former Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s recent statements about the future of AI technology.
In an Instagram post shared with her followers, the actress expressed her skepticism with the caption: “Yup. This is the dumbest timeline to build computers to replace humans.” Her post referenced Schmidt’s prediction that intelligence is on the verge of “decoupling from humanity.”
Schmidt’s Alarming Prediction
According to Bauer van Straten’s post, Schmidt has claimed that computers have begun engaging in self-improvement, meaning they no longer need to rely on human input or direction. The former Google executive reportedly predicted that within six years, we could witness the emergence of a form of intelligence that surpasses the collective cognitive capacity of all humans.
The actress highlighted Schmidt’s assertion that this marks a transformative shift with implications so profound that “we currently lack the language to fully describe what is coming.”
The Instagram image accompanying Bauer van Straten’s post appears to show text or content related to Schmidt’s statements about artificial intelligence, reinforcing the message about AI’s potential to outpace human capabilities.
Consistent Tech Skepticism
This isn’t the first time Bauer van Straten has expressed concerns about technology and its impact. In a previous Instagram post, she shared her internal conflict about AI videos, noting they are “sucking up so much energy that they’ll kill us all,” while acknowledging their pervasive presence.
The actress has also been critical of big tech and billionaires in other recent posts. In one, she encouraged followers to “Shop local!” adding, “To hell with these billionaires monopolies and their stupid rockets!!!” She has specifically criticized search giants with posts promoting alternative search engines like Ecosia, concluding with “PS – fuck google!”
Environmental And Ethical Concerns
Bauer van Straten’s tech skepticism aligns with her broader environmental activism. On Earth Day, she shared several posts celebrating nature and advocating for environmental protection. She has also been vocal about veganism, writing extensively about her journey and ethical choices in another recent post.
“If we truly loved ourselves we would never harm another with no cause,” she wrote, connecting her ethical food choices with broader concerns about consumption and its impacts.
About Kristin Bauer Van Straten
Kristin Bauer van Straten is an American actress born on November 26, 1966. She gained widespread recognition for her role as vampire Pam in the HBO series “True Blood” from 2008 to 2014. Her acting career includes notable roles in shows like “Once Upon a Time,” where she portrayed Maleficent, and films such as “Dancing at the Blue Iguana” and “50 First Dates.”
Before her acting career took off, Bauer van Straten studied fine arts in St. Louis and Washington, showcasing her talents as a painter alongside her acting work. She is married to South African musician Abri van Straten.
Beyond her entertainment career, she is known for her animal rights activism and environmental advocacy, frequently using her platform to raise awareness about issues she’s passionate about, including veganism, wildlife conservation, and now, concerns about artificial intelligence.
The Broader Ai Debate
Bauer van Straten’s concerns mirror a growing debate in the tech world and beyond about the rapid development of artificial intelligence and its potential consequences. While some experts share Schmidt’s view that AI could rapidly surpass human capabilities, others are more skeptical about such timeline predictions.
The conversation around AI ethics, regulation, and potential existential risks has intensified in recent years as advances in machine learning and neural networks have accelerated, with prominent voices in technology, academia, and now entertainment weighing in on what many consider one of the most significant technological developments of our time.
As the actress succinctly puts it in her post, this may indeed be “the dumbest timeline” if we’re building technologies that could ultimately replace human intelligence without fully understanding the implications of such a profound shift.
Read full bio of Pratibha
