The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists will announce a new time for the Doomsday Clock, which measures how close humans are to self-destruction, on Tuesday, January 27, in a live broadcast starting at 3 p.m. GMT.
Since last year, the clock's hands have stopped at 89 seconds to midnight, the closest they have been since its founding 78 years ago.
However, experts point to the possibility that its hands may come closer to midnight this year due to escalating global risks.
The Doomsday Clock serves as an indicator of a wide range of threats, including:
Increasing military conflicts between major powers.
The rapid expansion of the use of artificial intelligence in militaries and decision-making systems.
Severe climate changes that threaten the stability of the planet.
Experts say these factors make advancing the clock "inevitable," as the world faces a growing threat on the nuclear, technological and environmental levels.
Alicia Sanders-Zachry, policy chief for the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, explained that increased military investment and escalating threatening nuclear rhetoric are exacerbating the situation.
Dr. S. J. Beard, a researcher at Cambridge University, believes that the clock may advance by up to nine seconds due to escalating tensions between the major powers.
Experts also warn that artificial intelligence has become an existential threat in its own right, as it can accelerate conflicts and provide dangerous tools for biological weapons.
At the same time, climate change is causing rapid ice melt and rising sea levels, exacerbating environmental risks that are putting pressure on global stability.
The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic indicator showing how close humanity is to a man-made global catastrophe. It was created in 1947 on the cover of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, with the aim of prompting people to think about the dangers of nuclear weapons.
The clock is updated annually based on global developments, and the closer its hands get to midnight, the greater the risk.
