Archive · 16 Sep 2026
Sam Altman Says AI Fears Are Justified, Urges Safety First
Sam Altman leads OpenAI, a company that develops artificial intelligence.
He said people are right to be worried about how powerful AI could become.
He also said companies should make safety more important than making AI more capable.
If companies cannot keep AI safe, he said they should slow down or stop.
Altman said companies might be able to regulate themselves.
OpenAI also decided not to seek a public stock-market listing in 2026.
Other AI experts, including Dario Amodei and Geoffrey Hinton, have called for slower development.
The debate is about how quickly AI should advance and how carefully it should be controlled.
OpenAI chief Sam Altman said people are justified in fearing artificial intelligence.
Altman said AI companies should keep safety and alignment ahead of capabilities.
He said companies should slow down or stop if they cannot meet those priorities.
Altman said OpenAI will not pursue a 2026 initial public offering because of safety concerns.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and Geoffrey Hinton have also urged slower AI development.
- Who
- OpenAI chief Sam Altman, along with AI leaders and researchers including Dario Amodei and Geoffrey Hinton.
- What
- Altman reiterated that AI fears are justified and called for safety and alignment to remain ahead of AI capabilities.
- When
- Tuesday, September 16; OpenAI's 2026 IPO decision was reported during the same week.
- Where
- A Salesforce-hosted conference in San Francisco; Altman also discussed the IPO in an interview with Fortune.
- Why
- Because concerns are growing about AI safety, alignment, risks, and whether increasingly capable systems can be controlled.
Calls for Slower Development
Confidence in Industry Self-Regulation
Pace of AI progress
Calls for Slower Development
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said the industry must slow the pace at which it improves AI capabilities. Geoffrey Hinton called this warning sensible.
Confidence in Industry Self-Regulation
Sam Altman said AI companies can safely manage development and expressed confidence in OpenAI's and the industry's ability to do so.
How safety should be enforced
Calls for Slower Development
Critics and former industry employees have raised concerns that AI could become uncontrollable or cause catastrophic harm, supporting stronger caution around development.
Confidence in Industry Self-Regulation
Altman said AI companies are capable of essentially regulating themselves, provided safety and alignment stay ahead of capabilities.
Public-market plans
Calls for Slower Development
Altman said entering public markets while safety concerns remain prominent would be ill-advised, supporting OpenAI's decision not to pursue a 2026 IPO.
Confidence in Industry Self-Regulation
Altman said OpenAI does not feel pressure to go public now, leaving the timing of a future IPO open rather than abandoning the possibility altogether.
- Speaker
- Sam Altman, chief of OpenAI
- Location
- San Francisco
- Main warning
- The world is right to be afraid of AI, according to Altman.
- Safety position
- AI safety and alignment should remain ahead of capabilities.
- Fallback action
- Companies should slow down or stop if they cannot maintain those priorities.
- IPO decision
- OpenAI will not pursue an initial public offering in 2026.
- Other calls for caution
- Dario Amodei called for slower AI development, and Geoffrey Hinton supported that position.