Leaders of major AI companies in the United States unanimously called on September 12 to slow down the development of advanced AI models amid growing concerns about AI safety. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, announced that the company would not pursue an initial public offering (IPO) this year.
According to reports from CNBC and others on September 13, Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, published a lengthy blog post urging the AI industry to collectively slow the pace of AI technology's rapid advancement. He stated that the company would implement new safety measures, including involving independent evaluation organizations with access levels similar to its employees.
Amodei emphasized that adjusting the development pace does not mean halting AI development altogether. He argued that if the US AI industry collectively moderates its development speed, it can maintain competitiveness while ensuring necessary safety measures.
He also stressed the need for international cooperation in securing AI safety, suggesting that major AI companies in democratic nations should collaborate to establish common safety standards. He pointed out that cooperation on AI safety issues is also necessary between democratic governments and authoritarian regimes like China, noting that if the US alone slows its AI development, China could gain an advantage.
Notably, both Altman and Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and xAI, publicly expressed their support for Amodei's proposal. Musk shared Amodei's blog post on social media platform X, stating, "Dario is right." Altman also commented on X, calling the idea of allowing independent evaluation organizations similar access to employees a great one, adding that OpenAI would adopt similar measures and provide more details soon.
In an interview with Fortune published on the same day, Altman reiterated that OpenAI would not pursue an IPO this year due to safety concerns. He hinted that major AI companies, including OpenAI, might soon announce an agreement to slow AI development and jointly address safety risks.
Recently, AI safety has emerged as a significant issue in US politics, with lawmakers from both parties in Congress calling for new safety measures and regulatory discussions intensifying.
There is also growing social backlash against AI. In the US, concerns are rising over the energy and water burdens associated with expanding AI data centers, as well as fears of job losses due to AI proliferation. AI is becoming a key issue in the upcoming midterm elections in November.
However, despite the industry's voluntary movements, the Trump administration has been criticized for its passive approach to AI regulation. Bloomberg noted that the Trump administration has shown little interest in actively exercising regulatory authority to establish guardrails for AI development.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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