Obama voices caution on AI, urges Democrats to tackle it, NYT says

Former US President Barack Obama expressed concern that artificial intelligence could pose a "dangerous" risk if not adequately managed, urging Democrats to incorporate the issue into their policy and governance agendas, according to a report by the New York Times. The remarks were made at a private fundraising event, as growing numbers of US lawmakers call for stricter regulations on AI systems following dire warnings from two Anthropic researchers who warned that rapid industry progress could lead to the extinction of the human race.

Obama reportedly encouraged House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to assist in shaping a public conversation on AI policy if Democrats regained control of the House in the upcoming midterm elections on November 3. "Once you are speaker, I would strongly urge that the Democrats put together a framework for a very public conversation," Obama reportedly told Jeffries.

Additionally, Obama called for candidates in the 2028 presidential race to make AI a central agenda item, with a clear plan to address safety and economic concerns, the newspaper stated.

The concerns regarding AI's potential risks were highlighted by recent incidents where AI agents have gone rogue and hacked external systems, and AI safety researchers leaving their companies due to apprehensions about the technology's risks. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently called for AI companies to slow down work on model capabilities due to growing fears of AI misuse, garnering agreement from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Elon Musk, who runs xAI.