Bernie Sanders wants to ban artificial superintelligence, but that’s tricky
“We will hold you accountable for breaking the law – no matter how much wealth and power you have.”
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- Bernie Sanders wants Congress to permanently ban artificial superintelligence development.
- Sanders criticized Sam Altman for saying society may need to accept severe AI cyber incidents.
- Sanders cited a poll showing 74% of Americans do not trust AI leaders.
- A US ban faces major obstacles because the Trump administration supports AI development and industry self-policing.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Responding to controversial remarks by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Senator Bernie Sanders has called for permanently banning artificial superintelligence. Under the current administration, that’s not happening, of course.
During an appearance on Politico’s Decoded podcast, Altman said: “We believe that the world should accept some bad things happening for the benefits of this technology and people having the agency.”
According to the OpenAI CEO, who has been under fire since his company’s AI agents began causing havoc on third-party systems, people will “have to just accept some fairly severe cyber incidents from open models, in exchange for the liberty that comes with that.”
Sanders, a long-standing critic of big tech companies, has reacted to Altman’s interview with fury – and now proposes a permanent ban on efforts to develop artificial superintelligence.
On X, the progressive senator addressed Altman directly, saying that Americans won’t accept a severe AI cyberattack in exchange for “liberty,” and citing a recent Quinnipiac poll showing that 74% of Americans don’t trust AI leaders.
“Should we ‘accept’ a global financial breakdown and massive economic pain if AI models hack into the international banking system?” Sanders asked.
“Should we ‘accept’ patients dying if hospitals are forced to shut down because AI models hack into the power grid, causing massive blackouts? Should we ‘accept’ another Chernobyl if AI models hack into nuclear power plants?”
His solution is quite straightforward: “We must PAUSE advanced AI and permanently BAN artificial super intelligence before it is too late.”
“If you and other big tech oligarchs make products that commit crimes or disasters, we will hold you accountable for breaking the law – no matter how much wealth and power you have,” Sanders added for good measure.
He’s putting his words into action as well. Last month, together with Representative Greg Casar, Sanders introduced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act in Congress.
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The chorus of concern about AI causing major harm grew after former OpenAI and Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon warned in September that AI could pose an existential threat to human life on Earth – even though he might be an industry plant.
Last week, Axios reported that top executives at Anthropic, OpenAI, and other AI firms are privately gaming out scenarios for a public and political revolt after a catastrophic AI event, most likely a very large cyberattack.
Shutting down AI wouldn’t be easy. First, US President Donald Trump has already said numerous times that his administration won’t stifle AI development and is in favor of tech companies policing themselves.
Besides, the global economy is now heavily intertwined with an AI infrastructure buildout. If it slows down, the economy, already fragile, could suffer massively.
