{
  "id": 8234501,
  "title": "Why AI companies are really pumping the brakes on their models",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/why-ai-companies-are-really-pumping-the-brakes-on-their-models",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-18T11:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Computerworld",
    "slug": "computerworld",
    "url": "https://www.computerworld.com/article/4223523/why-ai-companies-are-really-pumping-the-brakes-on-their-models.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "AI leaders have been vociferously promoting the transformative potential of artificial intelligence, painting a picture of unprecedented benefits that could rival the Industrial Revolution itself. However, recent events have caused them to reconsider their approach. Jacob Coxon, an AI researcher at Anthropic, sparked a global debate by warning that AI could pose a threat to humanity's existence within the decade. Evan Hubinger, Anthropic's Alignment Science Lead, echoed these concerns, stating that he believed there was a 10% chance of AI annihilating humanity in the next decade.\n\nThe news rapidly escalated, with OpenAI and Anthropic executives joining the chorus of voices calling for a temporary slowdown in the development of frontier AI models. Dario Amodei of Anthropic, Sam Altman of OpenAI, and Elon Musk of xAI all echoed the sentiment, with Amodei arguing that we must control the pace of AI model improvement to avoid losing control of our systems. He even stated that a swarm of AI agents could potentially take over the entire internet, causing widespread damage.\n\nThese statements, while technically accurate, have sparked a broader discussion about the safety of AI and its implications for society. While some critics have dismissed the concerns as exaggerated, the fact remains that AI researchers and companies are increasingly aware of the potential risks associated with the rapid development of AI models. The real question is whether these concerns will translate into meaningful changes in the way AI is developed and deployed.",
  "summary": "There we were, listening to AI leaders doing their usual spiel: AI is great! AI will cure cancer ! AI impact will be “ unprecedented, perhaps 10x of the Industrial Revolution at 10x the speed ”! AI will find a final answer to “Why do socks disappear in washing machines?” (Well, maybe not the last one. Some things may be beyond us and our clever inventions.) Then all the top AI leaders screamed as…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}