At a Goldman Sachs conference in San Francisco, Silicon Valley executives debated the implications of recent warnings from AI insiders. Jacob Coxon, a former OpenAI researcher now at Anthropic, claimed that AI developers believe the technology could destroy humanity. 'These will soon be superhuman systems that can hack anything,' he said. Coxon is not the first to raise such concerns; multiple high-profile resignations from both Anthropic and OpenAI have occurred over safety worries in recent years. Some current Anthropic employees echoed Coxon's warnings, with one team lead stating, 'I personally think it is >10% within the next decade' that AI could kill all humans.

Despite these alarms, some executives and investors in Silicon Valley have reacted with skepticism. Anthropic and OpenAI are reportedly preparing for record-breaking initial public offerings, and some in the tech sector suggest the recent warnings may be designed to generate hype by signaling the power of these products. Dario Amodei, Anthropic's CEO, has faced criticism for predicting that AI could wipe out half of entry-level white-collar jobs and 'test who we are as a species.'

Grindr CEO George Arison called the warnings indicative of an 'anti-civilisational worldview at Anthropic,' arguing they were 'dangerous' and prompting him to instruct engineers at his LGBTQ+ dating app to stop using Anthropic's technology. 'Maybe they actually believe it,' Arison said, 'or they’re saying it because it’s a great way to gin up more investor support.'

Nvidia's Jensen Huang dismissed the warnings as 'complete nonsense,' despite his company's business interest in an AI boom. Brad Gerstner, head of Altimeter Capital, accused Coxon of 'ridiculous hyperbole,' while Hugging Face CEO Clement Delangue compared the warnings to 'asking your AC guy about climate change.' Both Gerstner and Delangue became more cautious after Amodei called for slowing AI development and global regulation.

Federal legislation co-sponsored by Senator Bernie Sanders, the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, could impose a temporary pause in advanced AI development. Sanders warned that 'there is a good chance that human beings will lose control over AI,' and that 'when scientists tell you there is a chance that it could have a cataclysmic impact on humanity, you’ve got to be a moron not to say, slow it down.'

However, the Trump administration has largely supported unfettered AI development, framing it as necessary to maintain US dominance over China. The White House previously labeled Anthropic a 'radical left, woke company' and designated it a supply chain risk, a move ruled illegal by a federal judge. David Sacks, Trump's former AI czar, has also attacked Anthropic.

OpenAI, which has not faced the same level of scrutiny from the White House, described its relationship with the Trump administration as 'a very good partnership.' The company, which announced plans to go public in June, was most recently valued at $852bn. It did not respond to a BBC inquiry seeking comment.

At the conference, the pursuit of profits seemed to outweigh existential concerns. One investor expressed interest in Anthropic's forthcoming S-1 filing, asking simply if the firm was profitable. Sid Sheth, CEO of chip company d-Matrix, which inked a deal with Nvidia at the conference, said, 'No,' when asked if he feared the world may be coming to an end.