Donald Trump

Former Google DeepMind Engineer Bilal Chughtai Warns AI Could Cause Human Extinction Without Coordinated Safety Measures

Bilal Chughtai, who worked on advanced AI safety at Google DeepMind before leaving the company in July 2026, stated that artificial intelligence could lead to the extinction of humanity. He emphasized that while safe development remains possible, AI labs must coordinate efforts and stop the reckless race toward more powerful systems. Chughtai argued that development pace should match what society can safely handle, with threats assessed and mitigated before they cause extreme damage. Similar warnings have come from Anthropic researchers including Jacob Coxon, who suggested advanced models could cause human extinction by the end of the decade, and Evan Hubinger, who estimated over 10% probability within ten years. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for slowing frontier model development when safety measures lag capabilities, a view supported by Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The discussion focuses on external audits, unified standards, and controlled progress rather than a complete halt. U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed AI regulation calls as a hoax, creating a divide between industry caution and policy resistance, as noted by Reuters.

US Presidential Memo Authorizes Selected Private Companies to Join Federal Cyber Operations Against Foreign Criminal Groups

The United States government has established a formal program allowing vetted private-sector companies to participate in offensive cyber operations targeting foreign criminal organizations. Signed by President Donald Trump on August 12, 2026, the presidential memorandum places the initiative under the National Coordination Center with joint oversight from the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. Participating firms will operate exclusively under government contracts, direction, and supervision, with strict requirements including technical evaluations, financial guarantees of at least one million dollars, and pre-approval for every operation. The program focuses on disrupting ransomware, phishing, financial fraud, and other schemes affecting American citizens while imposing clear limits to prevent unintended harm to US persons or escalation to prohibited levels of force. In contrast to Brazil’s ongoing policy discussions, the US move formally recognizes that advanced offensive capabilities now reside primarily in the private sector and creates a regulated mechanism to access them. Operational rules must be published within 60 days, marking a significant shift in how governments integrate private expertise into state-directed cyber actions.