‘Freaked out’: why AI safety fears are spiking ahead of Xi-Trump summit - South China Morning Post

Experts fear Silicon Valley is hurtling towards a major cybersecurity incident. Meanwhile, US-China tensions are undercutting AI safety talks

Chong Ming LeeandXinmei ShenPublished: 4:00pm, 11 Sep 2026A flurry of cybersecurity breaches, internal whistle-blowing, and declining visibility into model safety has sparked fresh alarm over the US artificial intelligence boom, igniting calls from some experts to slow down development – even as critics warn that deceleration risks surrendering America’s technological lead to China.The mounting concerns come just weeks before President Xi Jinping and US leader Donald Trump are set to meet for a high-stakes summit in Washington.OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told employees in a private company-wide meeting this week that the firm was considering slowing down its AI development, according to a Friday report from Bloomberg.

OpenAI may coordinate the slowdown with other leading AI laboratories, though some firms may decline to participate, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Paul Christiano, a prominent AI safety researcher who recently joined OpenAI’s non-profit board to serve on its safety and security committee, warned on Thursday of a “catastrophic and irreversible loss of control in the very near term” based on the current trajectory of the technology.