Warnings of artificial intelligence (AI) posing a threat to humanity are "not helpful," a top executive at IBM has said.

While critics like Tesla CEO Elon Musk have warned about the risks of developing AI, David Kenny, IBM's senior vice president of Watson and Cloud, said the technology is already proving to be beneficial.

"It's making things safer in cybersecurity, it's helping doctors and nurses and patients better find health care, it's helping people be compliant and manage their tax codes, so I see all these great benefits from it. And I hate statements that make people afraid because I think that's not helpful," Kenny said in a phone interview with CNBC.

Musk has called for regulation of AI, warning that the technology could creator a dictator and cause a third world war. Though Kenny admitted there could be potential risks if the tech is not underpinned by a set of principles, he suggested that such doomsday warnings were overblown.

"I like Elon personally and I appreciate the concern but I actually believe that if businesses and builders of the AI platform really adopt principles or trust and transparency they can get all the goodness without the risk," he said.