AI leaders split over safety fears

AI leaders are splitting into camps: those pushing to slow development, those racing to accelerate it, and others with shifting positions

SLOW DOWN
Dario Amodei
CEO OF ANTHROPIC
Left OpenAI in 2021 to build safer AI at Anthropic, he says. Warns of catastrophic risks, including bioweapons. Pushes for regulation and global AI slowdown

SHIFTING
Sam Altman
CEO OF OPENAI
Signed statement on AI extinction risk in 2023, backed regulation for powerful models. Later softened, stance, but now backs embedding evaluators to verify safety

Elon Musk
CEO OF XAI
Estimates AI turning harmful at 10-20% odds, calling risk greater than nuclear weapons. Yet founded xAI, joined Trump’s deregulation effort. Now agrees AI should slow

MIDDLE GROUND
Demis Hassabis
CEO OF GOOGLE DEEPMIND
Describes outlook on AI as “cautious optimism”, balancing belief in human ingenuity with serious risk concerns. Backs Amodei's slowdown proposal but says details still need work

Satya Nadella
CEO OF MICROSOFT
Backs deliberate pacing in advanced AI development. Says superintelligence must stay under human control while pushing wide adoption and open ecosystem

Sundar Pichai
CEO OF ALPHABET, GOOGLE
Says AI too important not to regulate and acknowledges risks. Calls for “sensible”, proportionate rules, with tailored approaches for different areas of AI development

MIDDLE GROUND
Mark Zuckerberg
CEO OF META
Admits safety concerns for powerful models but warns slowing AI in U.S. would let China take lead. Rejects calls for coordinated slowdown, saying AI labs can self-regulate

ACCELERATE
David Sacks
FORMER TRUMP AI ADVISER
Former White House AI and crypto czar portrays AI alarmism as work of well-funded “Doomer Industrial Complex”. Says firms don’t need antitrust waiver to slow safely

Jensen Huang
CEO OF NVIDIA
Leads company whose chips power most AI industry. Portrays AI as opportunity. Opposes regulation, says no company should ask government for more rules

Sources: Reuters, NYT
Pictures: Getty Images, Newscom, Gage Skidmore
© GRAPHIC NEWS