The AI Safety Debate Has Lost the Plot. We Asked 10 Experts What the Real Nightmares Are

The article argues that dramatic claims about AI becoming uncontrollable or causing human extinction can distract from risks that experts see as more immediate. In interviews across several fields, the writer found serious concern about AI-enabled cyber and biological attacks, as well as the use of unreliable systems in nuclear operations.

Most of the experts were sceptical that companies would sustain a development pause, given commercial pressures, and many doubted governments could regulate quickly enough. They stressed the importance of democratic oversight and public pressure on politicians, while disputing extinction forecasts they considered difficult to verify. The article also raises broader questions about AI’s effects on institutions, creativity and human relationships.