The global debate over artificial intelligence has hit a fever pitch. Apocalyptic warnings fill front pages one day, dismissals of the whole thing as hype fill them the next. Amid the noise, separating real danger from manufactured drama is becoming nearly impossible.

From Nobel laureate and AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton to Silicon Valley poster boys such as Sam Altman and Elon Musk, some of the most prominent voices in AI have warned that the technology is becoming too powerful and needs stronger regulation before development goes much further.

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But sceptics point to the uncomfortable economics behind the AI boom. Front-runners such as OpenAI and Anthropic are running up huge bills developing and operating increasingly powerful models, while promised revenues remain uncertain. With both companies eyeing stock-market listings, critics suspect that increasingly dramatic claims about AI’s power are simply aimed at keeping the venture capital flowing.

A Rattling Resignation

The latest cycle of the debate did not start in a boardroom or with the release of a new model: it started with a resignation post.

On September 8, AI researcher Jacob Coxon announced he was leaving Anthropic, warning that the industry was “racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives”. The post reportedly drew more than 150 million views within 36 hours – a resignation letter moving faster than most governments can hold a hearing.

Four days later, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published “We Must........

© Mathrubhumi English