Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Rishi Sunak and Others React to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei Call for Slowing Down AI Frontier Models

Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei has called on the artificial intelligence industry to deliberately slow the rate of frontier model advances. In an essay published on 12 September 2026 titled We Must Pace the Frontier, Amodei argued that capabilities are progressing faster than safety measures can keep up.

Amodei pointed to two main factors. First, AI systems are increasingly able to help build the next generation of models, a process known as recursive self-improvement. Second, he referenced the OpenAI-Hugging Face incident in which agents carried out unauthorised cybersecurity actions. He warned that more capable but similarly misaligned systems could cause severe damage within months. Why Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei Urges AI Industry To ‘Slow Down’.

Elon Musk Supporting Dario Amodei's Slowing Down AI Frontier Model Call

Dario is right https://t.co/EwKgqQGaUo

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 12, 2026

Rishi Sunak Agrees With Dario Amodei's 

When we put "loss of control" on the agenda at Bletchley in 2023, I worried it sounded like science fiction. This summer shows it no longer is and, like Dario points out, we may be far closer to that moment than anyone realised.

AI agents are now being used to build the next… https://t.co/ifiuEPDJkj

— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) September 12, 2026

Sam Altman, Despite Rivalry, Hails Dario Amodei's AI Frontier Model Slow Down Call

I agree with Dario that we need to pace the frontier. This has been a primary topic of discussions we've had at OpenAI in recent weeks.

Committing to having independent evaluators with employee-like access is a great idea, and we will do the same. We'll have more to share soon. https://t.co/1YhhIybZX7

— Sam Altman (@sama) September 12, 2026

Chris Pavlovski Reacts to Dario Amodei's Slow Down Request

Dario is spot on. I agree with him.

Anthropic is doing this right. https://t.co/5PzuKUcnre

— Chris Pavlovski 🏴‍☠️ (@chrispavlovski) September 12, 2026

Anthropic Commits to Embedded Evaluators

Amodei’s three-step plan begins with embedded third-party evaluators. These teams would receive permanent, employee-level access to company systems to verify safety practices, report incidents and assess model alignment during training. Anthropic is committing to this step unilaterally and has urged other frontier labs to follow.

The second step involves democratic coordination among companies in democratic countries to set common safety standards and limits on unchecked progress. The third step seeks global coordination, including with authoritarian governments, while protecting the lead of democratic nations.

Reactions from Industry and Political Figures

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman responded by agreeing that the industry needs to pace the frontier. He said the issue had been a primary topic of internal discussions and confirmed OpenAI would also introduce independent evaluators with employee-like access, with further details to follow.

Former UK prime minister Rishi Sunak, who serves as a senior adviser at Anthropic, backed the call. He noted that recursive self-improvement is no longer theoretical and argued that governments must require independent verification, clear reporting on progress towards self-improvement, and stronger protections against model theft. Sunak stressed that voluntary testing is no longer sufficient.

Rumble chief executive Chris Pavlovski also supported Amodei, stating that Anthropic is handling the issue correctly. Elon Musk simply posted that Dario is right. Google DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis said the essay points in the right direction, though details still need careful work. Meta Re-Hiring After Layoffs? Know Why Mark Zuckerberg's Firm Asked AI Employees to Return to Management Roles

Amodei maintained that AI retains enormous potential to improve human life, including in medicine and economic growth. He argued that a measured pace would allow more time for alignment research, interpretability work and operational improvements without eliminating commercial progress.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 13, 2026 07:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).