Professor Stephen Hawking says he believes pollution and human “stupidity” remain the biggest threats to mankind, while also expressing his concerns over the use of artificial intelligence in warfare.

The world’s leading theoretical physicist argued “we have certainly not become less greedy or less stupid” in our treatment of the environment over the past decade, during an interview on Larry King Now, which is hosted on Ora TV.

Professor Hawking said: “Six years ago, I was warning about pollution and overcrowding, they have gotten worse since then. The population has grown by half a billion since our last interview, with no end in sight.

“At this rate, it will be eleven billion by 2100. Air pollution has increased by 8 percent over the past five years. More than 80 percent of inhabitants of urban areas are exposed to unsafe levels of air pollution.

“The increase in air pollution and the emission of increasing levels of carbon dioxide. Will we be too late to avoid dangerous levels of global warming?”

The cosmologist was speaking at the Starmus science conference in Tenerife, themed this year as a tribute to his life’s work.

We have certainly not become less greedy or less stupid <p>Professor Stephen Hawking</p>

Professor Hawking went on to outline his concerns about the future of artificial intelligence technologies, and specifically their primary use in weaponry.

He said: “Governments seem to be engaged in an AI arms race, designing planes and weapons with intelligent technologies. The funding for projects directly beneficial to the human race, such as improved medical screening, seems a somewhat lower priority.

Pictures that show we are killing our planet Show all 21 1 /21 Pictures that show we are killing our planet Pictures that show we are killing our planet Pollution ULSAN, SOUTH KOREA - MARCH 16: A View of the SK Corporation oil refiner on March 16, 2006 in Ulsan, South Korea. The SK Corporation is Asia's leading energy and petrochemical company and South Korea's leading refiner, the fourth largest refiner in Asia and is also the World's second largest single complex oil refinery. Founded in 1962 as South Korea's first oil refiner. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Plastic pollution Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Melting icebergs Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Human overpopulation Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Sea level rise Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Severe drought Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Mudslides Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Lake shrinking Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Food and water crisis caused by drought Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Water crisis Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Rainforest logging Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Habitat destruction Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Fracking Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Wildfires Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Rubbish dump Pope Francis said a 'throwaway culture' was damaging the environment and the world's social fabric Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Hunger Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Illegal poaching Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Unsafe water Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Scrap and metal waste Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Smog Getty Pictures that show we are killing our planet Oil spill Getty

“I don’t think that advances in artificial technology will necessarily be benign. Once machines reach the critical stage of being able to evolve themselves, we cannot predict whether their goals will be the same as ours.”

The professor was also drawn on the nature of existence itself, saying the “deeper reason” of conceivable reality remains a “complete mystery” to him.

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Professor Hawking was at the Starmus conference to reveal ambitious plans to map the entire known universe using radiation patterns.