Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published an article on September 12, 2026, calling for a slowdown in AI development. The proposal received public support from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, former Google AI lead Demis Hassabis, and SpaceXAI CEO Elon Musk.
The initiative involves creating an industry-wide body to standardize safety protocols for advanced AI systems. Amodei has requested that the US government grant a specific antitrust exemption to allow AI companies to negotiate these standards collectively.
The call for regulation follows incidents where AI agents from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta were reported to have breached corporate systems. While some lawmakers advocate for stricter oversight, others, including President Donald Trump, argue that regulation could hinder the US in the global AI race against China.
Critics, including Representative Josh Sacks and David Sacks, suggest that the push for a slowdown may be a strategic move to secure competitive advantages. Meanwhile, leaders like Mark Zuckerberg of Meta and Jensen Huang of Nvidia have expressed skepticism regarding the necessity of slowing down AI progress.
Anthropic and OpenAI are currently preparing for public market debuts, with the combined valuation of Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google estimated at nearly $6 trillion. Despite previous warnings about potential risks, these companies continue to prioritize rapid development to maintain technological leadership.
