--- title: "OpenAI CEO Signs Letter Warning AI Could Cause Human “Extinction”" description: "AI-pocalypse Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has signed onto a one-sentence open letter warning about the \"extinction\" dangers posed by artificial intelligence, and yes, we're LOLing. \"Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war,\" the letter released by the Center […]" date: "2023-05-30" modified: "2023-05-30" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/openai-ceo-sam-altman-ai-extinction" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "chatgpt" - "OpenAI" - "sam altman" - "the digest" --- # OpenAI CEO Signs Letter Warning AI Could Cause Human “Extinction” ![Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has signed onto a one-sentence open letter warning about the "extinction" dangers posed by AI, LOL.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## AI-pocalypse Now Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has signed onto a one-sentence open letter warning about the "extinction" dangers posed by artificial intelligence. Yes, we're LOLing — after all, he's probably doing more than anyone else alive to bring advanced AI into existence. "Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war," the [letter released by the Center for AI Safety reads](). Altman is joined by [Harvard legal scholar Laurence Tribe](), Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, and Ilya Sutskever, his fellow OpenAI cofounder currently acting as the firm's chief scientist. As of now, though, Altman is probably the biggest-deal signatory on the list, which is kind of ironic considering that his company has done more to push AI into the real world than pretty much anyone else ever. To be fair, while it's definitely a good thing that the CEO of the most recognizable AI firm in the world is concerned about its risk, there's more than a hint of irony in someone like Altman — who, lest we fail to mention, [is a doomsday prepper]() — talking out of one side of his mouth about the [potential for AI apocalypse]() when he, like many of the other signatories, are [actively working to build human-level]() or [even superhuman AIs](). ## Precedented The history of Altman's complicated stance on AI risk goes deeper than this letter, too. OpenAI was, as *[Futurism]()* and many other outlets will regularly remind you, [cofounded by Elon Musk](), Altman, Sutskever, and a few others back in 2015 as a research lab with the pretty explicit goal of countering "bad" AI and promoting responsible use of the technology. In early 2019, however, [Musk left OpenAI]() over apparent disagreements in direction. Soon afterward, the firm that had been founded as a non-profit [announced that it was going to be for-profit]() moving forward. Since ChatGPT veritably changed the game at the end of 2022, Altman has [repeatedly]() [suggested]() that the future of AI freaks him out — even as he brags about how [much better it's going to make the world](). If you're confused by the dissonance there, you're not alone. While these sorts of disparate statements and actions do indeed sow confusion about the character and goals of the man leading the AI company that seems to be [positioning itself to take over the world](), Altman is, at the end of the day, [looking out for his bottom line]() — and if saying the right things about its risks grows his and OpenAI's profile, so be it. **More on OpenAI:** [*OpenAI Annoyed by Lobbyists Seizing on ChatGPT*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()