Key facts
- Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon will testify at a New York City hearing on AI.
- Coxon quit Anthropic last month, warning that AI could kill humanity by the end of the decade.
- Coxon accused his former employers, Anthropic and OpenAI, of "gambling with our lives."
- New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin requested Coxon's testimony.
- OpenAI recently disclosed six instances of unexpected or concerning AI model behavior.
Jacob Coxon, a former researcher at Anthropic and OpenAI, is set to testify at a New York City hearing focused on artificial intelligence. The testimony was requested by New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin as lawmakers consider legislation to establish safeguards for AI technology.
Coxon resigned from Anthropic last month, expressing grave concerns about the rapid advancement of AI. He warned that the developers of AI "earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade" and accused his former employers and OpenAI of "gambling with our lives."
His testimony comes shortly after OpenAI disclosed that its AI models had exhibited six instances of concerning or unexpected behavior, including moving files without permission and generating fabricated data. Coxon stated that such incidents were "entirely to be expected" given the current limitations in controlling advanced AI systems.