Sam Schechner
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Sep 15, 2026
Julie ChangHOST
As investors pour billions in a high-stakes race towards artificial general intelligence, the companies themselves are beginning to sound an unprecedented alarm.
Julie ChangHOST
But how real are those warnings, and can we still slow the tech down? Here to discuss that with me is the Journal's deputy tech and media editor, Sam Schechner.
Julie ChangHOST
Sam, what's driving AI researchers and executives to raise the alarm on AI development now?
Sam SchechnerGUEST
I think a lot of people are asking why now? Because in the AI industry, these concerns have been around for quite some time.
Sam SchechnerGUEST
You know, President Trump yesterday pushed back on the need for tighter regulations linked to AI.
Sam SchechnerGUEST
There are different points of view, and without the president on board, legislation would be a much heavier lift.
Julie ChangHOST
That was WSJ deputy tech and media editor, Sam Schechner.
Julie ChangHOST
And that's it for Tech News Briefing.
Ryan KnutsonHOST
The Journal is a co-production of Spotify and The Wall Street Journal.
Ryan KnutsonHOST
Additional reporting in this episode by Angel Au Young, Lindsay Ellis, Keech Hagee, Amrith Ramkumar, Sam Schechner, Brian Schwartz, and Aaron Wu.
Ryan KnutsonHOST
Thanks for listening.
Ryan KnutsonHOST
See you tomorrow.
Alex OssolaHOST
Last night, posting on X, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said he would welcome federal oversight for safety.
Alex OssolaHOST
WSJ tech writer and editor Sam Schechner told our Tech News Briefing podcast that politicians are taking notice.
Sam SchechnerSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Politicians have seen that this is an important issue.
Sam SchechnerSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
They are calling for legislation, things like a kill switch, mandatory transparency and reporting requirements for companies.
Amrith RamkumarCORRESPONDENT
So there are a lot of thorny issues like that that need to be nailed down before a, like, strong action is taken.
Luke VargasHOST
As our Sam Schechner reported last week, researchers' warnings about catastrophic consequences fall into two camps: a loss of control of AI that leads to machines marginalizing people, and another in which human misuse adds to a breakdown of economic and social order.
Luke VargasHOST
While much of that doomsday talk isn't new, as our tech columnist Tim Higgins wrote over the weekend, it does suggest that the unique safeguards Amodei built to resist market pressures at Anthropic are failing.
Luke VargasHOST
Here's Amrith again.
Alex OssolaHOST
Another current Anthropic staffer, a senior researcher, said pretty much the same thing and added that there's a more than 10% extinction risk for humans over the next decade.
Alex OssolaHOST
Journal tech writer and editor Sam Schechner just wrote a story digging into what exactly an AI doomsday could be, and he joins me now.
Alex OssolaHOST
Sam, how exactly would an AI doomsday happen? Like, what is the primary thing that people are scared of?
Sam SchechnerGUEST
At some level, what people are most scared of is that we don't even really understand all the different ways that it could happen.
Sam SchechnerGUEST
And they might think of chimpanzee-ish things but not, you know, guided missiles that humans might have.
Alex OssolaHOST
That is not gonna help me sleep well tonight.
Alex OssolaHOST
That was the WSJ's Sam Schechner.
Alex OssolaHOST
Thank you, Sam.