Why some people are stepping back from AI as concerns come from inside industry - explainer

A growing backlash against AI, fueled by concerns from industry leaders like Dario Amodei, Sam Altman, and Demis Hassabis, is raising urgent questions about safety and control. A Pew survey found 52% of Americans are more concerned than excited about AI. The article explores risks including cyberattacks, biological misuse, autonomous weapons, and mass surveillance, and the challenge of verifying safety claims.

A growing backlash against artificial intelligence, driven by concerns from within the industry itself, is prompting urgent questions about the safety and control of advanced systems. The article, an explainer, notes that CEOs Dario Amodei of Anthropic, Sam Altman of OpenAI, and Demis Hassabis of Google DeepMind have all recently backed a slower approach to developing the most powerful models, known as frontier models. Their warnings focus on risks including cyberattacks, biological and chemical misuse, autonomous weapons, and mass surveillance. Public anxiety is rising, with a June 2026 Pew Research Center survey finding that 52% of Americans are more concerned than excited about AI's growing role in daily life. The piece details how AI systems could be used to probe networks for weaknesses, write malicious code, or tailor scams at scale. It also examines the challenge of verifying safety claims when companies test their own systems and compete fiercely for users and investment. The article highlights the tension between safety and international competition, as governments view advanced AI as a source of economic and military power. It also addresses AI's use in warfare, where critics warn that AI-assisted targeting can make lethal choices appear objective even with incomplete data, and the risk of AI reinforcing discrimination in areas like hiring and policing.