Why does Mark Cuban say AI is not smart?

Mark Cuban said AI is closer to book smarts than intelligence. Models use statistics to predict the next word, so four AIs give four answers and a slightly reworded question changes the reply. AI also lacks ethics, does not know the consequences of its actions and is always behind real time. Smart, in his definition, is spotting the problem, finding the right inputs and combining them to solve it.

Cuban said he would trust a seeing-eye dog to cross a busy street before he would trust AI.
Cuban said he would change his mind if an AI could solve problems with minimal resources, as a brilliant child with nothing can.
Cuban still calls himself the biggest proponent of AI there is and says it makes anyone more productive.

▸In their words

“I'm letting the seeing eye dog take me across the street before I let the AI take me across the street.” Mark Cuban · at 35:16 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett (2026-10-26). Read the whole episode summary →

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