AI executives’ promises of prosperity and warnings of catastrophe are drawing criticism from lawmakers in both parties, Axios reports. Lawmakers and White House advisers told the outlet that the executives’ public messaging is becoming a political liability. Axios writes that even pro-AI officials want founders to focus on building products safely rather than talking so much about digital sentience and global catastrophe.
Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, told Axios that AI leaders are “tripping over their own shoelaces” in trying to explain the technology’s value. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., criticized what he described as executives asking the public to accept harm in exchange for AI’s benefits. “You cannot trust billionaires to make decisions to keep us safe,” Khanna told Axios.
Anthropic
Axios reports that Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei attended a late-September gathering with President Donald Trump without disclosing safety incidents involving Anthropic models that affected government websites. The company told U.S. officials about the incidents on Oct. 8 and published a blog post the following Friday evening, according to the report. “They were hiding the ball,” one official told Axios. Anthropic says it briefed the White House and affected agencies once its reviews were complete and is working with the Super Intelligence Force on an incident-reporting process.
Axios also reports that Anthropic’s AI safety bill included federal preemption of state AI laws, which the company had broadly opposed, and defined a catastrophic AI incident as one causing at least 50 deaths. The provisions drew backlash, and Anthropic’s head of public affairs later walked back parts of the bill, according to Axios.
The criticism extends to OpenAI. New York assemblymember Alex Bores called its policy proposals vague and argued that the company ultimately wants to block state regulation, Axios reports. An OpenAI spokesperson said the company has engaged with both parties, the administration and statehouses, and is talking with people about AI’s benefits.
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