Category: Semafor

Top AI pioneers backed an Anthropic researcher’s warning of potential human extinction. Paul Christiano — author of an influential 2016 paper on AI safety with future Anthropic founder Dario Amodei and a longstanding believer that the technology would take off relatively gradually and be made safe — said he now ...

China’s inflation accelerated for the first time in months, compounding the economic difficulties for millions of people. Higher energy and food prices pushed inflation up, adding to cost worries in a country that until recently was threatened with deflation. Analysts fear that a protracted conflict in the Middle East could ...

US President Donald Trump said the Iran war would end “immediately” after November’s midterm election, contradicting the analysis of experts and even some of his closest advisors. Top White House officials, including the vice president and the secretary of state, have reportedly told Trump that Iran would resist the US ...

The European Commission rolled out new “Made in Europe” guidelines Wednesday to protect the continent’s manufacturers from Chinese competition, though some worried a lack of binding quotas would undermine their efficacy. Nine Chinese companies selling robotic lawnmowers are targeting the EU, given China’s lack of lawns, underlining the extent to ...

The Republican Party kicked off its first-ever midterm convention in Dallas Wednesday, nicknamed a “Trump-a-Palooza,” as party figures bet President Donald Trump’s center-stage performance can lift their fortunes despite his record-low approval ratings. Believed uniquely capable of energizing the party’s base, Trump will give two televised speeches at the two-day ...

Anthropic declined to submit its latest model for testing to a top British AI safety institute, sparking fears in the UK that reviews of frontier AI would become the sole province of Washington. Concerns are also growing about the lack of transparency around the Trump administration’s AI security framework that ...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to sue Haaretz over its report that he ignored the UAE president’s explicit warning about Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks, revelations that caused uproar in Israel and widened Netanyahu’s rift with Abu Dhabi. The allegations, which Netanyahu denies, have energized his domestic opponents, some of ...

US long-term bond yields spiked to three-year highs Wednesday after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s bond buybacks failed to impress markets. Borrowing costs leapt higher in part because investors expected more firepower, a Deutsche Bank strategist told Bloomberg: “It’s like Treasury created this monster that it now has to keep feeding.” ...

A new startup wants to make American robotics fun again. Dynamic Creatures, a spinoff of Boston Dynamics, launched out of stealth yesterday with a focus on making robots for hospitality and entertainment, starting with theme parks and retail spaces. Boston Dynamics was once best known for its viral videos of ...

The ominous trailer for the Sam Altman movie, Artificial, launched Tuesday, the same day OpenAI became the first AI company to solve one of the Millennium Prize challenges. It was like a tribute to the company’s brutal duality, constantly achieving impressive milestones while being forced to combat the worst public ...