From demonic apparition to a future history of total chaos, I hope I’ve made it clear I’m not a blind accelerationist when it comes to artificial intelligence. The technology’s potential is fundamentally unpredictable. That makes work in the field as dangerous as it is important, and I do think concern, generally, is justified. There are important questions here worth raising. There are important conversations here worth having. But chatbots breaking up your marriage and racist computers are not reasonable critiques, nor is firebombing data centers a reasonable alternative to progress in the field. The AI safety people and the writers entranced by them are, frankly, a little bit out of control. The philosophy of Safetyism? Also, perhaps, more dangerous than any of the field’s most existential concerns.

Byrne Hobart writes The Diff, a newsletter on inflections in finance and tech. Tobias Huber is a writer and tech founder. Their book on technological stagnation and the nature of innovation is forthcoming with Stripe Press.

-Solana