AI Workers Push Pause on Development After 1 Anthropic Exit Sparks Wider Revolt
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 12
AI Workers Push Pause on Development After 1 Anthropic Exit Sparks Wider Revolt
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 12
Summary
Six employees said AI workers at Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta and Google are now pressing top executives to slow development until stronger safeguards are in place.
Jacob Coxon’s public resignation from Anthropic this week, accusing Anthropic and OpenAI of “gambling with our lives,” set off internal chats, encrypted discussions and private dinners that turned long-running fears into a broader organizing push.
Anthropic messages viewed by the Times showed employees welcoming Coxon’s move into public view, underscoring how widely his concerns already circulated inside leading labs.
Both Anthropic and OpenAI are still targeting blockbuster IPOs within a year, while antitrust risks and pressure from competitive Chinese AI start-ups complicate any coordinated slowdown.