Atomic scientists on Tuesday set their “Doomsday Clock” closer than ever to midnight, citing aggressive behavior by nuclear powers Russia, China and the US, fraying nuclear arms control, conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, Beijing’s actions around Taiwan and artificial intelligence (AI) worries among factors driving risks for global disaster.
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists set the clock to 85 seconds before midnight, the theoretical point of annihilation. That is four seconds closer than it was set last year.
The Chicago-based nonprofit created the clock in 1947 during the Cold War to warn the public about how close humankind was to destroying the world.
Photo: AP
The scientists voiced concern about threats of unregulated integration of AI into military systems and its potential misuse in aiding the creation of biological threats, as well as its role in spreading disinformation. They also noted continuing climate change challenges.
“Of course, the Doomsday Clock is about global risks, and what we have seen is a global failure in leadership,” nuclear policy expert and Bulletin president and CEO Alexandra Bell said. “No matter the government, a shift towards neo-imperialism and an Orwellian approach to governance will only serve to push the clock toward midnight.”
It was the third time in the past four years that the scientists moved the clock closer to midnight.
“In terms of nuclear risks, nothing in 2025 trended in the right direction,” Bell said. “Longstanding diplomatic frameworks are under duress or collapsing, the threat of explosive nuclear testing has returned, proliferation concerns are growing, and there were three military operations taking place under the shadow of nuclear weapons and the associated escalatory threat. The risk of nuclear use is unsustainably and unacceptably high.”
Bell pointed to Russia’s continued war in Ukraine, the US and Israeli bombing of Iran, and border clashes between India and Pakistan. She also cited continuing tensions in Asia, including on the Korean Peninsula and China’s threats toward Taiwan, as well as rising tensions in the western hemisphere since US President Donald Trump returned to office.
Maria Ressa, a 2021 Nobel Peace Prize recipient for her journalistic efforts exposing abuses of power in the Philippines including how social media platforms were used to spread disinformation, participated in the announcement.
She lamented the rise of technology that circulates lies more quickly than facts.
“We are living through an information Armageddon that’s brought about by the technology that rules our lives, from social media to generative AI. None of that tech is anchored in facts. Your chatbot is nothing but a probabilistic machine,” Ressa told an online news conference.
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