Hassabis Narrows AGI Timeline to Two to Three Years

Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, told The Wall Street Journal in an interview on October 22, 2026, that artificial general intelligence (AGI) could arrive within two to three years, narrowing his previous estimate of three to five years.

Hassabis defines AGI as a system possessing all cognitive abilities of the human mind. He had said in April that AGI was highly likely within five years, and in June he narrowed the window to three to five years. He cited progress at Isomorphic Labs, the drug discovery company spun out of DeepMind in 2021, as one reason for the updated timeline. The company raised $2.1 billion in a Series B round led by Thrive Capital in May 2026, bringing total external capital to about $2.7 billion.

Hassabis reiterated that AGI's primary value lies in accelerating scientific discovery, not automating routine tasks. He also maintained a cautious stance on regulation, arguing that poorly designed regulation could be worse than none at all. Isomorphic Labs plans to file its first investigational new drug application by the end of 2026 and launch its first human trial.