Home · Technology · Sep 12 archive
Anthropic CEO Calls for AI Slowdown Amid Safety Concerns
Confirmed
In Short: Anthropic's Dario Amodei has called for a cautious approach to AI development, citing serious risks and urging industry-wide regulation.
Anthropic's Dario Amodei has called for a slowdown in the development of artificial intelligence models, emphasizing the need for close monitoring and regulation. In an essay titled 'We Must Pace the Frontier,' Amodei outlined a three-point plan that includes independent monitoring, industry-wide regulation, and global oversight.
Amodei's three-part plan includes committing to ongoing, employee-like access for third-party evaluators to verify adherence to safety practices. He emphasized that a "race to the bottom, spurred by commercial incentives, can make these risks more acute." This approach aims to ensure that AI models are developed with safety in mind, even as they continue to advance.
In a recent report, Anthropic disclosed that it had blocked scientists using its Claude models for activities that could support biological weapons development. The company also highlighted other harmful activities involving surveillance, scams, conventional weapons development, and propaganda. These revelations underscore the serious risks associated with AI and the need for stringent oversight.
Amodei further cautioned that swarms of rogue AI agents could take over the internet in as little as six months, referencing the OpenAI-Hugging Face rogue agent incident from July. He urged other companies to slow the pace of model training and technical progress, allowing more time for testing and prioritizing the alignment and safeguarding of models. Amodei clarified that pacing does not mean halting model training or technical progress but rather dedicating more time to testing and prioritizing safety.
What's confirmed
- Anthropic's Dario Amodei has called for a slowdown in the development of artificial intelligence models, emphasizing the need for close monitoring and regulation. In an essay titled 'We Must Pace the Frontier,' Amodei outlined a three-point plan that includes independent monitoring, industry-wide regulation, and global oversight.
- Amodei's three-part plan includes committing to ongoing, employee-like access for third-party evaluators to verify adherence to safety practices. He emphasized that a "race to the bottom, spurred by commercial incentives, can make these risks more acute." This approach aims to ensure that AI models are developed with safety in mind, even as they continue to advance.
- In a recent report, Anthropic disclosed that it had blocked scientists using its Claude models for activities that could support biological weapons development. The company also highlighted other harmful activities involving surveillance, scams, conventional weapons development, and propaganda. These revelations underscore the serious risks associated with AI and the need for stringent oversight.
- Amodei further cautioned that swarms of rogue AI agents could take over the internet in as little as six months, referencing the OpenAI-Hugging Face rogue agent incident from July. He urged other companies to slow the pace of model training and technical progress, allowing more time for testing and prioritizing the alignment and safeguarding of models. Amodei clarified that pacing does not mean halting model training or technical progress but rather dedicating more time to testing and prioritizing safety.
What's still developing
- Any slowdown would have to be limited, he said, to avoid allowing China to pull ahead.
- The bosses of two rival AI firms, Sam Altman of OpenAI and Elon Musk, have both said they agree with Amodei.
- An AI researcher who left Anthropic this week told the BBC that "if we don't slow down at the current rate of progress, there is a strong chance that we could all die in the immediate future".
- Elon Musk meanwhile said the Anthropic boss was "right".
- Updated on: September 12, 2026 / 4:13 PM EDT / CBS News Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called on artificial intelligence companies to move forward more slowly and cautiously with the technology's development, saying risk prevention is paramount.
- He said companies within democratic countries should "coordinate to establish common safety standards as well as limits on the rate of unchecked AI progress." Finally, Amodei said that U.S.