In a recent episode, the Guardian’s UK technology editor, Alex Hern, brought us an eye-opening conversation with Geoffrey Hinton, often known as the godfather of artificial intelligence. He raised the alarm that the technology was in danger of evolving faster than our ability to control it, to the extent it could become an existential threat.

Now Hern is back to present the other side of the growing debate on AI and to describe an encounter with another of the field’s leading thinkers, Sam Altman. He tells Michael Safi that Altman and Hinton agreed on one thing: AI could pose an enormous risk to the world. But from there they diverge – Altman believes those risks can be managed, regulated and ultimately harnessed towards a future where the health, education and societal benefits of artificial intelligence are truly transformative.