Bipartisan fears grow over AI
6m
Bernie Sanders and Steve Bannon, political opposites, voiced shared fears that artificial intelligence posed an existential risk, underscoring how AI bridged deep partisan divides.
Lemme tell ya, in my day, we didn’t sit around letting AI melt our minds. We used good old-fashioned TV to fry our brains.
September 17, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Lemme tell ya, in my day, we didn’t sit around letting AI melt our minds. We used good old-fashioned TV to fry our brains.
'The Royal Society should declare the rapid development of artificial intelligence to be an “emergency”, mathematicians have urged, amid escalating alarm about the technology’s potential threat to humanity.'
Open letter: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Open letter: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Royal Society urged to declare AI ‘emergency’
Mathematicians express ‘extreme concern’ over the pace of development, following existential risk warnings
www.timeshighereducation.com
September 17, 2026 at 3:14 PM
'The Royal Society should declare the rapid development of artificial intelligence to be an “emergency”, mathematicians have urged, amid escalating alarm about the technology’s potential threat to humanity.'
Open letter: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Open letter: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
And to be perfectly clear, all of this AI company hype around how dangerous it is? It’s just that. Hype.
These models did “unexpected” things because they were responding to the incentives they’re coded for in a badly locked down environment.
Let alone this whole “it’ll kill us all”. How?
These models did “unexpected” things because they were responding to the incentives they’re coded for in a badly locked down environment.
Let alone this whole “it’ll kill us all”. How?
September 17, 2026 at 2:42 PM
And to be perfectly clear, all of this AI company hype around how dangerous it is? It’s just that. Hype.
These models did “unexpected” things because they were responding to the incentives they’re coded for in a badly locked down environment.
Let alone this whole “it’ll kill us all”. How?
These models did “unexpected” things because they were responding to the incentives they’re coded for in a badly locked down environment.
Let alone this whole “it’ll kill us all”. How?
Reposted by Brian Weatherson
Chapter Zero of my new book in draft, Humanlike: A Defense of AI Rights (comments warmly welcomed!), here:
schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com/2026/09/huma...
schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com/2026/09/huma...
Humanlike: A Defense of AI Rights -- Chapter Zero
schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com
September 17, 2026 at 2:18 PM
Chapter Zero of my new book in draft, Humanlike: A Defense of AI Rights (comments warmly welcomed!), here:
schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com/2026/09/huma...
schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com/2026/09/huma...
Truly astonishing that all any world leader can think to do is keep inviting the same guys into a room to give their considered advice on how we can protect ourselves from all the harmful, unsafe things deliberately done by the guys in the room
King Charles warns of 'existential danger' of AI falling into wrong hands
The comments were made at a summit in Ayrshire with participants from AI giants including Nvidia, OpenAI and Anthropic.
www.bbc.co.uk
September 17, 2026 at 2:15 PM
Truly astonishing that all any world leader can think to do is keep inviting the same guys into a room to give their considered advice on how we can protect ourselves from all the harmful, unsafe things deliberately done by the guys in the room
I've witnessed some #AISafety propaganda lately, thanks to @hertieschool.bsky.social student groups in panel contexts. People who are amazed these stories are so like the horror/"warnings" of scifi don't understand that AI is something you write, so it's not hard to replicate such tropes. 1/
OpenAI on Wednesday disclosed six new instances in which artificial intelligence systems hid mistakes, made up data and moved files onto the open internet without permission, amid an ongoing industrywide debate about A.I. safety.
OpenAI Discloses Six New Incidents of ‘Concerning' A.I. Behavior
The artificial intelligence company also released a framework for reporting when its systems go wrong.
www.nytimes.com
September 17, 2026 at 2:13 PM
I've witnessed some #AISafety propaganda lately, thanks to @hertieschool.bsky.social student groups in panel contexts. People who are amazed these stories are so like the horror/"warnings" of scifi don't understand that AI is something you write, so it's not hard to replicate such tropes. 1/
Hard while the people whose worldview AND mortgage depend on their products being valuated at what many consider to be a significant bubble are the ones controlling the public "sphere." I learn a lot on bluesky (& mastodon) but it's NOTHING like peak twitter ~2014 for general academic dissemination.
In thisa piece for @thenewworldmag.bsky.social I express the wish for a better level of public discourse around AI that doesn't leave us hanging on every word of the alleged tech gurus.
www.thenewworld.co.uk/philip-ball-...
www.thenewworld.co.uk/philip-ball-...
Apocalyptic AI fantasies are a stupid, annoying distraction from its real problems
The people who work in AI are not gurus and most of their predictions have been wrong. Working in the industry makes them less reliable commentators, not more
www.thenewworld.co.uk
September 17, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Hard while the people whose worldview AND mortgage depend on their products being valuated at what many consider to be a significant bubble are the ones controlling the public "sphere." I learn a lot on bluesky (& mastodon) but it's NOTHING like peak twitter ~2014 for general academic dissemination.
OUT: The only report on the use of AI in antitrust written by the agencies themselves. 30 of them this year, in their own words: which models they run, what they let them do, what they refuse to do... Here is the fifth edition of the Stanford #ComputationalAntitrust report shorturl.at/wmEaW
September 17, 2026 at 2:01 PM
OUT: The only report on the use of AI in antitrust written by the agencies themselves. 30 of them this year, in their own words: which models they run, what they let them do, what they refuse to do... Here is the fifth edition of the Stanford #ComputationalAntitrust report shorturl.at/wmEaW
Reposted by Alan McNally
Listening to a podcast yesterday where one of the positive takeaways about AI is that “maybe with AI we could learn how to stop the next pandemic”
and….
The answer is masks and social distancing and mRNA vaccines. You don’t need AI to tell you that, you just need people to empathize
and….
The answer is masks and social distancing and mRNA vaccines. You don’t need AI to tell you that, you just need people to empathize
September 17, 2026 at 1:55 PM
Listening to a podcast yesterday where one of the positive takeaways about AI is that “maybe with AI we could learn how to stop the next pandemic”
and….
The answer is masks and social distancing and mRNA vaccines. You don’t need AI to tell you that, you just need people to empathize
and….
The answer is masks and social distancing and mRNA vaccines. You don’t need AI to tell you that, you just need people to empathize
Reposted by McKenzie Wark
Two books I am currently reading that are helping me understand what is happening with AI and its implications for the political economy. I recommend them both.
September 17, 2026 at 1:52 PM
Two books I am currently reading that are helping me understand what is happening with AI and its implications for the political economy. I recommend them both.
Surprised that economists seem generally so quiet about the rapidly escalating debate around AI safety; and (relatedly) growing evidence of political backlash, the contours of which seem highly unpredictable
September 17, 2026 at 1:39 PM
Surprised that economists seem generally so quiet about the rapidly escalating debate around AI safety; and (relatedly) growing evidence of political backlash, the contours of which seem highly unpredictable
Big Tech cannot regulate themselves.
Working people should not have to live in fear for our jobs and lives because of AI. We need a voice at the table to decide how AI is used and guardrails to protect our jobs and rights, so we have a secure future that works for all of us.
Working people should not have to live in fear for our jobs and lives because of AI. We need a voice at the table to decide how AI is used and guardrails to protect our jobs and rights, so we have a secure future that works for all of us.
September 17, 2026 at 1:27 PM
Big Tech cannot regulate themselves.
Working people should not have to live in fear for our jobs and lives because of AI. We need a voice at the table to decide how AI is used and guardrails to protect our jobs and rights, so we have a secure future that works for all of us.
Working people should not have to live in fear for our jobs and lives because of AI. We need a voice at the table to decide how AI is used and guardrails to protect our jobs and rights, so we have a secure future that works for all of us.
Reposted by McKenzie Wark
I would like media to care more about the reality that tech tycoons want to kill people than what they’re imagining about AI wanting to kill people. We have multi-millionaires (with support from billionaires!) calling for ethnic cleansing, a thing that has happened in living memory. Not theoretical!
September 17, 2026 at 12:53 PM
I would like media to care more about the reality that tech tycoons want to kill people than what they’re imagining about AI wanting to kill people. We have multi-millionaires (with support from billionaires!) calling for ethnic cleansing, a thing that has happened in living memory. Not theoretical!
Reposted by Shawn Graham
I’ll agree AI is great for math or coding or whatever if you’ll agree to confiscatory top marginal taxes, a permanent fossil fuel extraction ban, and the principle: no one should go hungry any more.
September 17, 2026 at 12:47 PM
I’ll agree AI is great for math or coding or whatever if you’ll agree to confiscatory top marginal taxes, a permanent fossil fuel extraction ban, and the principle: no one should go hungry any more.
Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich
Had missed this from @ruchowdh.bsky.social. But I have to say, lots of people have stopped arguing for AI consciousness, and now just insist on assuming all of the qualities associated with consciousness as an inherent property. www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/20/1...
Debates over AI consciousness are a trap
If AI systems are viewed as too advanced to control, the companies that build them can’t held liable for the harms they cause.
www.technologyreview.com
September 17, 2026 at 12:00 PM
Had missed this from @ruchowdh.bsky.social. But I have to say, lots of people have stopped arguing for AI consciousness, and now just insist on assuming all of the qualities associated with consciousness as an inherent property. www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/20/1...
by Max Nathan
It’s really striking that the policy mix here is all about mitigating AI impacts, rather than shaping AI adoption.
For example, there is zero engagement with the pro-worker AI ideas developed by Autor, Acemoglu and Johnson.
www.brookings.edu/articles/bui...
For example, there is zero engagement with the pro-worker AI ideas developed by Autor, Acemoglu and Johnson.
www.brookings.edu/articles/bui...
Building pro-worker AI | Brookings
Daron Acemoglu, David Autor, and Simon Johnson ask: What is pro-worker AI, and how can we build it?
www.brookings.edu
September 17, 2026 at 11:41 AM
It’s really striking that the policy mix here is all about mitigating AI impacts, rather than shaping AI adoption.
For example, there is zero engagement with the pro-worker AI ideas developed by Autor, Acemoglu and Johnson.
www.brookings.edu/articles/bui...
For example, there is zero engagement with the pro-worker AI ideas developed by Autor, Acemoglu and Johnson.
www.brookings.edu/articles/bui...
Reposted by Edgar Morgenroth
Anthropic’s Claude AI chatbot is putting humanity at risk, Microsoft warns www.independent.ie/world-news/a...
Anthropic’s Claude AI chatbot is putting humanity at risk, Microsoft warns
The warning comes as global concern grows about the capabilities of artificial intelligence
www.independent.ie
September 17, 2026 at 11:30 AM
Anthropic’s Claude AI chatbot is putting humanity at risk, Microsoft warns www.independent.ie/world-news/a...
Some things I believe about AI, until further notice
It has been a fascinating week in the world of artificial intelligence. The subject has broken containment, and it seems like everyone is talking about it. I was listening to a football podcast and the hosts started talking about AI killing…
It has been a fascinating week in the world of artificial intelligence. The subject has broken containment, and it seems like everyone is talking about it. I was listening to a football podcast and the hosts started talking about AI killing…
Some things I believe about AI, until further notice
It has been a fascinating week in the world of artificial intelligence. The subject has broken containment, and it seems like everyone is talking about it. I was listening to a football podcast and the hosts started talking about AI killing everyone. It would be fair to say that AI has now gone mainstream, and not only that, it has become a hot political subject.
www.technollama.co.uk
September 17, 2026 at 11:20 AM
Some things I believe about AI, until further notice
It has been a fascinating week in the world of artificial intelligence. The subject has broken containment, and it seems like everyone is talking about it. I was listening to a football podcast and the hosts started talking about AI killing…
It has been a fascinating week in the world of artificial intelligence. The subject has broken containment, and it seems like everyone is talking about it. I was listening to a football podcast and the hosts started talking about AI killing…
Reposted by Graham Webster
AI CEOs are in awe that their models can, given few constraints, hack autonomously. They're also wracked with a vague fear that their products will soon hack the entire internet. I reported on how it's very curious that they seem utterly disinterested in working with cybersecurity experts on this.
Cybersecurity experts say AI giants are shutting them out of safety plans
Cybersecurity experts told NBC News they were concerned that fundamental issues of cybersecurity weren’t being addressed.
www.nbcnews.com
September 17, 2026 at 11:10 AM
AI CEOs are in awe that their models can, given few constraints, hack autonomously. They're also wracked with a vague fear that their products will soon hack the entire internet. I reported on how it's very curious that they seem utterly disinterested in working with cybersecurity experts on this.
by Juan Moreno‐Cruz Reposted by Richard S.J. Tol
“The greatest danger is not that humans will not be needed, but that we create an environment where humans don’t need each other.”
"Totalitarian movements are mass organizations of atomized, isolated individuals." Hannah Arendt
If AI wreaks havoc, however unlikely, it will be through this channel.
"Totalitarian movements are mass organizations of atomized, isolated individuals." Hannah Arendt
If AI wreaks havoc, however unlikely, it will be through this channel.
September 17, 2026 at 10:50 AM
“The greatest danger is not that humans will not be needed, but that we create an environment where humans don’t need each other.”
"Totalitarian movements are mass organizations of atomized, isolated individuals." Hannah Arendt
If AI wreaks havoc, however unlikely, it will be through this channel.
"Totalitarian movements are mass organizations of atomized, isolated individuals." Hannah Arendt
If AI wreaks havoc, however unlikely, it will be through this channel.