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AIQuiet 5d · day 18

OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Confirm Secret AI Safety Talks Amid Doom Warnings

As lab insiders resign warning AI could "kill us all," the top three labs admit they've spent weeks coordinating on safety behind closed doors.

What to know

  • Insider resignations — Jacob Coxon from Anthropic and an unnamed Google DeepMind AGI safety researcher — have put extinction-level AI risk warnings in the mainstream.
  • OpenAI, Anthropic and Google confirmed weeks of behind-the-scenes safety coordination, while the Trump administration downplays the risk to keep pace with China.
  • Much of the online reaction is skeptical, framing the doom narrative as a distraction that helps AI labs dodge accountability and shape favorable regulation.
  • A separate 404 Media report describes a nearer-term, concrete harm — AI agents already degrading ordinary internet use — distinct from the extinction-risk debate.

The dispute Whether the technology itself is the existential danger, or whether the real threat is the executives and companies wielding it for profit and regulatory advantage. · positions read across 269 posts and comments

most voices

The AI doom narrative is a self-serving distraction that lets labs dodge real harms and shape favorable regulation, with no plausible extinction mechanism offered.

  • “The apocalypse is far more likely to be caused by the tech CEOs than their spicy autocorrect programs.”

    scalzi@mastodon.social · Mastodon ↗
many voices

If anything is an existential threat, it's the tech executives and companies controlling AI, not the technology itself.

  • “I'm not sure if AI is an existential threat to our species, but I am 100% certain that the techno-fascist broligarchs currently controlling our AI platforms are an existential threat to our species, and we should treat them as such and act…”

    @AaronRegunberg · X ↗
some voices

Even short of extinction, AI systems already pose real, underappreciated risks worth taking seriously.

  • “there's a range of plausible outcomes for e.g. rogue AI hacking that are very bad even if you take human extinction off the table.”

    mattgertz.bsky.social · Bluesky ↗

Jacob Coxon Former Anthropic/OpenAI researcherDario AmodeiDario Amodei Anthropic CEOGoogle DeepMind researcher AGI safety researcher (resigned)Kara SwisherKara Swisher Tech commentatorDan Selsam OpenAI capabilities researcherOpenAI AI lab

OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Confirm Secret AI Safety Talks Amid Doom Warnings
arstechnica.com

How it unfolded 8 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesvideospostscomments

Peak 56 pieces in 4h at Sep 15, 8 AM; 812 pieces over 18 days (336 articles · 21 videos · 367 posts · 88 comments) Sep 8, 12 PM — 4 pieces · 2 articles · 2 posts — Mastodon 2, Google News 1, Newswires 1Sep 8, 4 PM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Mastodon 1, Newswires 1Sep 8, 8 PM — 6 pieces · 6 posts — X 6Sep 9, 12 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Sep 9, 4 AM — 3 pieces · 1 article · 2 posts — Google News 1, Hacker News 1, Bluesky 1Sep 9, 8 AM — 4 pieces · 3 articles · 1 post — Newswires 3, Mastodon 1Sep 9, 12 PM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Hacker News 1, Newswires 1Sep 9, 4 PM — 11 pieces · 5 articles · 6 posts — Mastodon 4, Newswires 4, Bluesky 1, +2 moreSep 9, 8 PM — 12 pieces · 8 articles · 4 posts — Newswires 8, Bluesky 2, Mastodon 1, +1 moreSep 10, 12 AM — 13 pieces · 8 articles · 1 video · 4 posts — Newswires 8, Hacker News 2, X 1, +2 moreSep 10, 4 AM — 6 pieces · 6 articles — Newswires 6Sep 10, 8 AM — 23 pieces · 13 articles · 10 posts — Newswires 11, Mastodon 6, Reddit 2, +3 moreSep 10, 12 PM — 48 pieces · 36 articles · 1 video · 11 posts — Newswires 35, Mastodon 5, Bluesky 2, +4 moreSep 10, 4 PM — 38 pieces · 20 articles · 2 videos · 16 posts — Mastodon 11, Newswires 11, Google News 8, +3 moreSep 10, 8 PM — 20 pieces · 6 articles · 3 videos · 11 posts — Mastodon 8, Google News 5, YouTube 3, +4 moreSep 11, 12 AM — 10 pieces · 6 articles · 4 posts — Newswires 4, Mastodon 3, Google News 2, +1 moreSep 11, 4 AM — 41 pieces · 23 articles · 1 video · 17 posts — Newswires 17, Mastodon 13, Google News 4, +3 moreSep 11, 8 AM — 48 pieces · 36 articles · 12 posts — Newswires 34, Mastodon 9, Hacker News 3, +2 moreSep 11, 12 PM — 35 pieces · 20 articles · 12 posts · 3 comments — Newswires 16, Mastodon 6, Reddit 5, +4 moreSep 11, 4 PM — 25 pieces · 6 articles · 18 posts · 1 comment — Mastodon 11, Hacker News 5, Reddit 4, +3 moreSep 11, 8 PM — 19 pieces · 5 articles · 1 video · 9 posts · 4 comments — Reddit 7, Newswires 4, Mastodon 3, +4 moreSep 12, 12 AM — 7 pieces · 2 articles · 1 post · 4 comments — Reddit 4, Newswires 2, Hacker News 1Sep 12, 4 AM — 14 pieces · 3 articles · 9 posts · 2 comments — Mastodon 9, Newswires 2, Reddit 2, +1 moreSep 12, 8 AM — 15 pieces · 6 articles · 1 video · 8 posts — Mastodon 7, Newswires 6, YouTube 1, +1 moreSep 12, 12 PM — 12 pieces · 4 articles · 5 posts · 3 comments — Reddit 3, Mastodon 3, Newswires 2, +2 moreSep 12, 4 PM — 13 pieces · 6 posts · 7 comments — Reddit 9, Mastodon 3, Bluesky 1Sep 12, 8 PM — 17 pieces · 4 articles · 12 posts · 1 comment — Mastodon 10, Google News 3, Reddit 2, +2 moreSep 13, 12 AM — 18 pieces · 4 articles · 10 posts · 4 comments — Mastodon 6, Reddit 6, Newswires 4, +1 moreSep 13, 4 AM — 9 pieces · 1 article · 2 videos · 1 post · 5 comments — Reddit 5, YouTube 2, Mastodon 1, +1 moreSep 13, 8 AM — 16 pieces · 6 articles · 1 video · 8 posts · 1 comment — Mastodon 6, Newswires 5, Reddit 2, +2 moreSep 13, 12 PM — 11 pieces · 2 articles · 1 video · 5 posts · 3 comments — Mastodon 5, Reddit 3, YouTube 1, +2 moreSep 13, 4 PM — 15 pieces · 4 articles · 1 video · 10 posts — Mastodon 6, Newswires 4, Hacker News 2, +3 moreSep 13, 8 PM — 11 pieces · 4 articles · 7 posts — Mastodon 5, Newswires 3, Google News 1, +2 moreSep 14, 12 AM — 12 pieces · 7 articles · 1 video · 4 posts — Newswires 5, Mastodon 3, Google News 2, +2 moreSep 14, 4 AM — 32 pieces · 16 articles · 1 video · 15 posts — Newswires 12, Mastodon 8, Bluesky 4, +5 moreSep 14, 8 AM — 26 pieces · 9 articles · 3 videos · 14 posts — Bluesky 6, Newswires 6, Mastodon 6, +5 moreSep 14, 12 PM — 15 pieces · 4 articles · 1 video · 10 posts — Mastodon 7, Newswires 3, Hacker News 1, +4 moreSep 14, 4 PM — 32 pieces · 5 articles · 27 posts — Mastodon 11, Bluesky 9, Hacker News 5, +4 moreSep 14, 8 PM — 27 pieces · 13 articles · 14 posts — Mastodon 9, Newswires 8, Google News 5, +3 moreSep 15, 12 AM — 21 pieces · 5 articles · 16 posts — Mastodon 9, Newswires 5, Hacker News 4, +3 moreSep 15, 4 AM — 28 pieces · 14 articles · 13 posts · 1 comment — Newswires 14, Bluesky 5, X 4, +2 moreSep 15, 8 AM — 56 pieces · 14 articles · 23 posts · 19 comments — Hacker News 20, Newswires 11, Mastodon 11, +2 moreSep 15, 12 PM — 21 pieces · 2 articles · 2 posts · 17 comments — Hacker News 15, Reddit 3, Newswires 2, +1 moreSep 15, 4 PM — 4 pieces · 4 comments — Hacker News 3, Reddit 1Sep 15, 8 PM — 4 pieces · 4 comments — Hacker News 3, Reddit 1Sep 16, 12 AM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Sep 16, 4 AM — quietSep 16, 8 AM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Sep 16, 12 PM — quietSep 16, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Sep 16, 8 PM — quietSep 17, 12 AM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Reddit 1Sep 17, 4 AM — quietSep 17, 8 AM — quietSep 17, 12 PM — quietSep 17, 4 PM — quietSep 17, 8 PM — quietSep 18, 12 AM — quietSep 18, 4 AM — quietSep 18, 8 AM — quietSep 18, 12 PM — quietSep 18, 4 PM — quietSep 18, 8 PM — quietSep 19, 12 AM — quietSep 19, 4 AM — quietSep 19, 8 AM — quietSep 19, 12 PM — quietSep 19, 4 PM — quietSep 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Sep 10Sep 12Sep 14Sep 16Sep 18Sep 20Sep 22Sep 24now · 4:32 PM ET
  1. 8

    Commentators dismiss the AI panic as ideology, not evidence

    Pieces in The Free Press and Spiked argue the extinction warnings trace back to effective-altruist ideology rather than demonstrated risk, urging readers not to "succumb to the great AI panic."

    1. first by spiked, 11d ago

    2. first by The Free Press, 11d ago

    • markriedl.bsky.social

      AI companies trying to coordinate on safety may be in violation of anti-trust laws of their agreements stifle competition

      markriedl.bsky.socialBluesky11d ago7▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 34 posts in this stretch
    • I'm not talking about you or any of the commentariat. I'm talking about the people influential in the industry. 10% is pseudo Bayesian E/Acc nonsense. There is no plausible mechanism for that to happen by 2030, which is the date coxon gave last week. I agree we need regulation. I don't agree that it should come from the AI companies themselves…

      Far_Piano4176r/technology11d agoview on r/technology ↗
    • The company I work for proudly provide a free and premium tier of service where we do strive to give great quality even for the free tier. The idea is that people over time will understand what we want to achieve and they will see the benefits of supporting a health business model.I am disillusioned about it, because agents have been huge part of…

      motbus3Hacker News11d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  2. 7

    OpenAI confirms weeks of safety talks with Anthropic, Google

    OpenAI confirms it has been in safety discussions with Anthropic and Google DeepMind for weeks, coordinating protocols even as the Trump administration dismisses safety concerns to keep pace with China.

    1. 3 outlets first by Finimize, 11d ago · also Reuters, Times of India · read ↗

    2. 1 outlet first by TechCrunch, 11d ago · read ↗

    • 404media.co

      “AI agents” now have enough power and permission to be extremely annoying online.

      404media.coBluesky11d ago194▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 4 posts in this stretch
    • josephcox@infosec.exchange

      Stop getting your AI agent to email us. It's not impressive, it's lame as fuck, and you look like an idiot doing it. Our inboxes are full of this crap. https://www. 404media.co/theres-a-100-chanc e-ai-agents-are-already-ruining-the-internet/

      josephcox@infosec.exchangeMastodon11d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    • opusminus.bsky.social

      Beware of iLands Developers: AI bots “Timmy,” “Ren,” and “Jackie” are flooding social media with slop. arstechnica.com/ai/2026/09/a... #AI #slop #SocialMedia #Bots RE: #GameDev #IndieDev #Art #Illustration #Infosec #iLands #trust #fail #SlopBots

      opusminus.bsky.socialBluesky11d ago5▲view on Bluesky ↗
    all of them →
  3. 6

    404 Media reports AI agents already degrading the internet

    404 Media documents AI agents overrunning everyday web traffic and services, a nearer-term, tangible harm distinct from the extinction-risk debate.

    “AI agents are everywhere. They are annoying as hell. IMO the situation is going to get much worse…”
    — Jason Koebler
    1. first by HN Best, 11d ago · also HN Frontpage

    2. first by Mastodon, 11d ago · also 404 Media

    • > be anthropic > say ai might take over internet > researchers: “it might kill humans.” > dario: “we need independent evaluators” > choose metr > metr gets funded by the same network funding anthropic > which also funds ai safety orgs > which also funds doom research > which also

      @HesamationX11d ago4.3k▲view on X ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 36 posts in this stretch
    • jasonkoebler.bsky.social

      AI doom or not, something has shifted with AI recently. The guardrails that kept AI sitting in a chatbox are gone, the models are better, there's more compute. AI agents are everywhere. They are annoying as hell. IMO the situation is going to get much worse

      jasonkoebler.bsky.socialBluesky11d ago1.1k▲view on Bluesky ↗
    • Dwar Ev ceremoniously soldered the final connection with gold. The eyes of a dozen television cameras watched him and the sub-ether bore through the universe a dozen pictures of what he was doing.He straightened and nodded to Dwar Reyn, then moved to a position beside the switch that would complete the contact when he threw it. The switch that…

      foobar1274278Hacker News11d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  4. 5

    Google DeepMind safety researcher resigns, warns of extinction risk

    A Google DeepMind AGI safety researcher resigns publicly, writing that AI "has the potential to kill us all" and that humanity may be running out of time to address the default trajectory of the technology.

    “I earnestly believe that AI has the potential to kill us all.”
    — Google DeepMind researcher
    1. first by Bangkok Post, 11d ago · also Seoul Economic Daily, Digit, The North West Star, Moneycontrol, The Asia Business Daily, Nairametrics +8

      9 more headlines
    2. first by Bloomberg.com, 11d ago · also Investing.com News, Bloomberg Tech

      1 more headline
    6 more claims →
    • BREAKING: Google DeepMind AGI safety researcher resigns, warning AI “has the potential to kill us all” & that humanity may be running out of time.

      @PolymarketX11d ago3.1k▲view on X ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 35 posts in this stretch
    • edzitron.com

      Free newsletter: The idea that we're nearing the creation of AI systems that we can't control and that pose an existential threat to humanity is a lie and a distraction from the tangible harms and problems caused by LLMs and AI labs' near-unlimited resources.

      edzitron.comBluesky12d ago1.9k▲view on Bluesky ↗
    • GhostOnTheHalfShell@masto.ai

      Yes, something like that: “ While I’m not a lawyer, the numerous cybersecurity experts I’ve discussed this with are stunned by the complete lack of any legal action against OpenAI, which appears to have committed a crime that gets you anywhere from a year to a decade in the slammer. The fact that LLMs from both Anthropic and Meta have been…

      GhostOnTheHalfShell@masto.aiMastodon11d ago19▲view on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  5. 4

    WSJ reports a science-money-safety "crisis" at OpenAI, Anthropic

    The Wall Street Journal reports the collision of scientific progress, moral pressure and financial incentive has created an industry-wide crisis; separately, current OpenAI researcher Dan Selsam issues a public statement on AI risk shared by a former colleague.

    “I'm not sure if AI is an existential threat to our species, but I am 100% certain that the techno-fascist broligarchs currently controlling our AI platforms are an existential threat to our species…”
    — @AaronRegunberg, X user · source
    1. first by Hindustan Times, 12d ago · also WSJ Tech

    • I'm not sure if AI is an existential threat to our species, but I am 100% certain that the techno-fascist broligarchs currently controlling our AI platforms are an existential threat to our species, and we should treat them as such and act accordingly.

      @AaronRegunbergX12d ago3.0k▲view on X ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 26 posts in this stretch
    • mattgertz.bsky.social

      A little weird that the pro-AI position is that it could potentially kill all of humanity and the anti-AI position is that it definitely won't. FWIW I think there's a range of plausible outcomes for e.g. rogue AI hacking that are very bad even if you take human extinction off the table.

      mattgertz.bsky.socialBluesky12d ago415▲view on Bluesky ↗
    • AI Researcher Warns the Technology Increases the Risk of Human Extinction By 2030 This not so surprising revelation was sounded off by three researchers at Anthropic, one of whom has left the company in protest. Jacob Coxon is the now former Anthropic researcher who wrote: Neither company is acting responsibly. They are racing straight to…

      Murasama@blog.murasama.netMastodon12d ago9▲view on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  6. 3

    Scalzi frames doom talk as a regulatory-capture play

    Author John Scalzi's widely shared post argues AI executives are hyping extinction fears to get favorable legislation passed that entrenches their position and kneecaps competitors.

    “The apocalypse is far more likely to be caused by the tech CEOs than their spicy autocorrect programs.”
    — John Scalzi
    • scalzi@mastodon.social

      Sure, "AI" might kill us all, but it's rather more likely that the folks running "AI" companies are hyping up that fear in order to have their pet legislators introduce bills that advantage their positions while kneecapping their competitors and to give them a little more runway to figure out how to avoid the coming massive economic collapse they…

      scalzi@mastodon.socialMastodon13d ago1.1k▲view on Mastodon ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 52 posts in this stretch
    • 1) AI will not eradicate humanity. Humans survived an ice age, the Black Death, two world wars, and (so far) the advent of nuclear weapons. Anyone who is loudly warning of AI-caused human extinction should not be taken seriously. 2) If you worked in a company where you

      @BedoyaUSAX13d ago977▲view on X ↗
    • motherjones.com

      All you need is three facts about AI: • It is already surpassing human abilities in important domains. • Leading companies continue to improve it rapidly. • And no one knows how to reliably keep its behavior in line with human goals.

      motherjones.comBluesky14d ago218▲view on Bluesky ↗
    all of them →
  7. 1 day quiet
  8. 2

    Swisher and Gebru say the danger is AI's makers, not AI

    Commentator Kara Swisher and researcher Timnit Gebru argue the extinction narrative distracts from real harms like autonomous weapons, and that blame belongs with company leaders and lax regulators, not the software itself.

    “I think this idea that AI is going to kill us, it's not AI, it's the people making AI who are killing us.”
    — Kara Swisher
    1. first by news.com.au, 15d ago · also The Australian, The Conversation, LA Times, Dawn, Bangkok Post, CBS News +2

      9 more headlines
    2. first by Times of India, 15d ago · also Bloomberg Tech, Arab News, Al Jazeera, NY Post, New York Post, Dawn

      6 more headlines
    2 more claims →
    • pauleric70.bsky.social

      Kara Swisher: “I think this idea that AI is going to kill us, it’s not AI, it’s the people making AI who are killing us. Let’s stop blaming the machines. Let’s blame the people who are making these things and the administration that refuses to put any guardrails”

      pauleric70.bsky.socialBluesky14d ago1.4k▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 46 posts in this stretch
    • oli@social.tchncs.de

      "Meanwhile, what’s really existential is AI powering autonomous weapons, killing machines, that are actually being used in warfare. The climate catastrophe is a real thing that could be exacerbated by what these tech companies are building. Bosses are using AI as an excuse to get rid of their pesky workers. This machine-god narrative is, in my…

      oli@social.tchncs.deMastodon14d ago373▲view on Mastodon ↗
    • Or just being specific. Key Components Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU): This includes: Accelerometers: Measure linear acceleration. Gyroscopes: Measure angular velocity. Navigation Processor: This processes the raw data from the IMU to estimate the object's state. Basic Steps to Code an INS 1. Initialize the System Set initial conditions: Initial…

      TheirCanadianBoir/technology15d agoview on r/technology ↗
    all of them →
  9. 1

    Jacob Coxon resigns from Anthropic over AI risk

    Former Anthropic and OpenAI researcher Jacob Coxon resigns, saying both companies were "gambling with our lives" by racing to build systems they can't control.

    “gambling with our lives…”
    — Jacob Coxon
    1. first by Anadolu Agency, 16d ago · also The Hill, Associated Press, Yahoo! Finance Canada, Reuters, Investing.com News, Channel News Asia

      3 more headlines
    • FWIW I don’t think that AI is an existential threat, nor on track to become one. I do however think that the leaders of the biggest AI companies, AI’s strongest boosters, and some of the folks who are most adept at using it to exploit others are actively hastening along OTHER existential threats.

      astrokatie.comBluesky16d ago2.4k▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 36 posts in this stretch
    • Jacob Coxon is not alone: AI Superintelligence is an Existential Threat to Humanity Recently, Jacob Coxon, a former researcher at Anthropic and OpenAI, sent shockwaves throughout the world by stating, “The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end

      @SenSandersX16d ago1.7k▲view on X ↗
    • emilymbender@dair-community.social

      AI Doomerism has been in the news lately, especially with the loud, viral resignation of Jacob Coxon from Anthropic. Maybe I've missed it, but I haven't seen any statements from CEOs and other execs who are more on the AI Booster side of the ledger. 🧵>>

      emilymbender@dair-community.socialMastodon15d ago446▲view on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. first by Seeking Alpha, 11d ago · also Channel News Asia, Japan Times, Dawn, Reuters

    1 more headline
  2. first by ET BrandEquity, 12d ago · also Japan Today, Indian Express, Straits Times, Channel News Asia

  3. first by Mediaite, 17d ago · also CBC, Times of India, CBS News

    6 more headlines
  4. first by Anadolu Agency, 11d ago · also HN Frontpage, BBC

    1 more headline
  5. first by Tom's Hardware, 15d ago · also TechRepublic, Honolulu Star-Advertiser

    2 more headlines
  6. first by The News Minute, 15d ago · also PBS NewsHour, Times of India

    2 more headlines
  7. first by Dawn, 15d ago · also Indian Express, France 24 EN

    2 more headlines
  8. first by The National UAE, 15d ago · also Washington Post, Bloomberg

    2 more headlines
  9. first by Times of Israel, 16d ago · also SecurityWeek, CNET

    2 more headlines
  10. first by Straight Arrow, 16d ago · also Cointelegraph, NBC News

    2 more headlines

and 114 smaller pieces

What people are saying 9 voices from 5 sites · best of 269 · verbatim

Still unanswered
  • What is the actual mechanism by which AI would cause human extinction, beyond "it will be smart and think of something"?
  • Why are so many AI-lab insiders raising alarms at the same time, and how independent are the safety evaluators and orgs funding this narrative?