Anthropic Whistleblower Explains Why AI Is Bigger Threat Than Nukes

Does artificial superintelligence really pose a greater risk to humanity than nuclear weapons? The answer is yes, if you ask former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon, who recently posted a series of warnings claiming that "AI could kill all humans."

"We know how to control nuclear weapons...We don't yet know how to control AI," Coxon said while talking to Fox News. 

The researcher, who says he spent three years conducting research at Anthropic and OpenAI, labelled AI "possibly the most dangerous technology that humanity has ever created."

"It's basically out of science fiction. I think we have no other choice but to cooperate internationally because an arms race would be disastrous in a way that no other human activity has been in the past," he said. 

The Warning

Coxon on Tuesday took to social media and said the two biggest AI companies are more focused on beating each other to build the most advanced AI models than they are on safety.

"Neither company is acting responsibly. They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives," the 27-year-old said. 

"The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade. This is not a marketing stunt," he added.

Superintelligence is the theoretical point when AI's capabilities exceed human intelligence.

"We know how to control nuclear weapons... We don't yet know how to control AI."

Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon, who recently left the company, is sounding the alarm on artificial intelligence, calling it "possibly the most dangerous technology that humanity has ever… pic.twitter.com/f03Fq2YIYv

— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 9, 2026

Anthropic backs Coxon

Anthropic safety executive Evan Hubinger backed up Coxon on X.  

"We really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans!" he said, adding that he estimated that risk at more than 10 percent over the next decade. 

Hubinger said Anthropic is "trying its best", but does not yet have a plan to ensure an AI system that surpasses human capabilities would obey its creators. He said there was a "low" risk of that happening with current models.

The Lapses

Coxon considers Anthropic's efforts genuine but said he believes no company can responsibly develop an AI that surpasses humans without government intervention or a coordinated slowdown.

"At Anthropic, the stakes are well-understood, but they are locked in a race to get there first -- they believe no one else will act responsibly, so they must do it themselves, despite the risk," he said. 

In February, Anthropic removed a pledge from its safety charter to halt the development of its models if it failed to control their risks.

It argued that if it unilaterally paused its work, its less cautious rivals would dominate the industry, making it less safe overall.

At the end of July, more than 1,000 tech industry employees, including Anthropic's CEO Dario Amodei, called on Washington to support a coordinated slowdown in the development of the most advanced AI systems.

OpenAI halted training of its latest models for two weeks in August before resuming it under tighter controls. On Sunday, OpenAI's chief scientist, Jakub Pachocki, called for "extreme caution."

"International coordination on future AI development needs to become a top priority for governments around the world," he said in a blog post.

AI models are not regulated by federal law in the United States.