Jacob Coxon, a former researcher at Anthropic, has resigned from his position, sparking a viral debate over the existential risks of artificial intelligence. Coxon accused both Anthropic and his previous employer, OpenAI, of gambling with human lives by racing toward the development of super-intelligent AI. He warned that these superhuman systems could cause human extinction by the end of the decade.
Other researchers and staff members at Anthropic have publicly agreed with these dire warnings, with one researcher estimating there is a more than 10 percent chance that AI could kill all humans within the next decade. These warnings echo concerns voiced by other artificial intelligence experts in recent months and come amid a series of cyberattacks that have heightened fears, leading to increased calls for a slowdown in the pace of development.
The alarm has reached lawmakers, including Senator Ted Cruz, who described the technology as a catastrophic risk. However, other figures have pushed back against the claims. Elon Musk and other conservative figures on X have called the chorus of concerns a setup and a psyop.