Buffett Warns AI Could Supercharge Scams After Seeing $50,000 Deepfake Plea
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Jul 11
Buffett Warns AI Could Supercharge Scams After Seeing $50,000 Deepfake Plea
2 articles · Updated · CNBC · Jul 11
Summary
A convincing AI-generated video of Warren Buffett looked and sounded real enough that even his wife or daughter might not have spotted it, he said, underscoring how easily the technology could be used to defraud people.
Buffett said the experience left him worried that scammers could deploy fake emergency requests—such as a plea to wire $50,000 after a car crash—making fraud far more effective than traditional schemes.
Speaking in response to a question about generative AI, Buffett said he does not understand the technology well but sees "enormous potential for good" alongside "enormous potential for harm."
He compared AI to the "genie" released by nuclear weapons: once unleashed, hugely powerful and difficult to control, with no clear answer yet for how society should handle it.