Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has received public support from two of the technology industry’s most prominent figures after warning that artificial intelligence development could move too quickly.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk both said Saturday that AI companies should slow the pace of development to reduce risks to humanity.
Amodei outlined his concerns in a lengthy statement, while also describing AI’s potential to improve medicine, accelerate economic growth and expand human capabilities.
“I believe that AI could cure most major diseases in the next 5–10 years,” Amodei wrote, predicting that the technology could help create greater prosperity and support a renaissance of democracy and freedom.
He cautioned, however, that AI systems could become dangerously misaligned with human interests if their capabilities advance faster than safety measures.
“Like many technologies before it, AI brings risks,” Amodei wrote. “Because it is such a powerful technology, these risks are serious.”
The Anthropic chief identified several threats, including loss of control over advanced systems, cyberattacks, bioterrorism and severe economic disruption.
He also warned that intense competition among companies could encourage a “race to the bottom” in which commercial incentives override safety concerns.
“We must slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI models,” Amodei wrote. “Progress will still seem fast, and we must make wise use of the time we gain.”
Musk responded about an hour later by reposting Amodei’s statement on X and writing, “Dario is right.”
Altman followed with his own message, saying he agreed that companies need to “pace the frontier” of AI development.
“This has been a primary topic of discussions we’ve had at OpenAI in recent weeks,” Altman wrote.
Altman also endorsed independent evaluators receiving employee-like access to AI companies so they can examine safety practices and assess developing systems.
Musk and Altman’s agreement is notable because they have been fierce rivals for years.
Musk sued Altman and OpenAI in 2024, alleging the company abandoned its original nonprofit mission. Musk lost the case in May.
Despite their dispute, both executives have repeatedly warned about the possibility of AI systems becoming uncontrollable, per Mediaite.
Musk has said advanced AI could produce a “Terminator outcome” and has estimated that the technology carries a 10% to 20% chance of killing all humans.
Altman has also acknowledged the risks associated with increasingly capable systems while continuing to lead OpenAI’s efforts to develop and deploy them.
The warnings come amid renewed debate over AI regulation after a former Anthropic researcher said the technology could kill humans by the end of the decade.
A former OpenAI researcher separately told Joe Rogan that AI was on track to take control away from people.
The comments from Amodei, Musk and Altman place competing AI companies on rare common ground: Development may continue, but safety evaluations and oversight must keep pace.
