AI Doomerism

Extracted Attributes

• Definition

  A perspective highlighting widespread fears of negative consequences from artificial intelligence, including job displacement, catastrophic events, or the end of humanity.

• Primary Concern

  Job displacement due to AI advancements

• Associated Fears

  Existential risk, human obsolescence, catastrophic outcomes

• Counterarguments

  AI will generate unlimited abundance, unprecedented investment, and economic growth

• Funding Source (as argued by David Sachs)

  Open Philanthropy (Dustin Moskovitz)

• Ideological Root (as argued by David Sachs)

  Effective Altruism

• Impact on Policy (as argued by David Sachs)

  Influenced Biden administration's approach to Global AI Governance and 'Woke AI'

• Potential Consequence (as argued by David Sachs)

  Jeopardizing US competitive edge in the global AI Race with China

Timeline

• AI research publications began a period of rapid increase, growing sevenfold by 2020, contributing to the rise of AI doomerism concerns. (Source: web_search_results)

  2015-01-01

• Anthropic released its first Claude large language model, marking a significant advancement in AI capabilities. (Source: wikipedia)

  2023-03-01

• Forbes published an article titled 'We Should Welcome The New AI Doomerism,' discussing the growing embrace of this belief among intellectuals. (Source: web_search_results)

  2023-03-30

• Anthropic released the Claude 3 family of large language models (Haiku, Sonnet, Opus), further advancing AI capabilities. (Source: wikipedia)

  2024-03-01

• Anthropic is projected to release Claude 4, including Opus and Sonnet, indicating continued rapid development in AI. (Source: wikipedia)

  2025-05-01

Claude (language model)

Claude is a family of large language models developed by Anthropic. The first model was released in March 2023. The Claude 3 family, released in March 2024, consists of three models: Haiku, optimized for speed; Sonnet, which balances capability and performance; and Opus, designed for complex reasoning tasks. These models can process both text and images, with Claude 3 Opus demonstrating enhanced capabilities in areas like mathematics, programming, and logical reasoning compared to previous versions. Claude 4, which includes Opus and Sonnet, was released in May 2025.

Web Search Results

• We Should Welcome The New AI Doomerism - Forbes

  A growing number of intellectuals are embracing “AI doomerism”—the belief that artificial intelligence will lead to the end of humanity or at least to some significant catastrophic event. This was most recently on display when the Future of Life Institute, a nonprofit focused on reducing existential risks to humanity, released a petition signed by a number of luminaries in academia and the technology industry, including Elon Musk and Steve Wozniak. The petition called on AI labs to pause [...] ByJames Broughel # We Should Welcome The New AI Doomerism ByJames Broughel, Contributor. Terminator Artificial intelligence "doomerism" is only the latest in a long tradition of intellectuals making ... More predictions about the end of the world. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images) [...] Some AI doomers are going so far as to argue AI development should be shut down altogether, including using military force if necessary. Given all the hyperbole, AI doomerism will probably not gain significant traction, especially in the near term. Environmental alarmism took years to seep into the public consciousness, and even today relatively little has been done to combat global warming.

• AI Doom: A Beginners Guide

  As AI has advanced rapidly, stirring both awe at its potential and anxiety about its consequences. This unease has birthed a subculture of "AI doomers" - those who foresee catastrophic outcomes from AI. But doomerism merits nuanced analysis, rather than dismissal as mere Ludditism. This complex culture encompasses serious cautions, but also overblown fatalism that risks becoming self-fulfilling. By examining AI doomerism's origins, controversies, and evolution, we can chart a wise path forward. [...] Since the earliest days of AI research, fears simmered over intelligent machines turning against their creators. As AI capabilities advance at a dizzying pace – 7x more research publications in 2020 than in 2015 – a full-blown culture of AI doomerism has taken root. This philosophical pessimism ranges from measured cautions to nihilistic prophecies of human obsolescence. And with any fear-based agenda, the profiteering grifters are not far behind. But the most dire AI doomer predictions can [...] AI doomerism has drawn forceful rebuttals from intelligent leaders in technology. "AI Doomers Are a Cult," argues investor Marc Andreessen, he insists AI will generate "unlimited abundance," not apocalypse. In fact, Andreessen's "Why AI Will Save The World" is a must read for understanding an anti-Doomer perspective. "AI safety seems to attract the combined skills of Twitter, LinkedIn, and Dunning-Kruger,” scoffs Yann LeCun, Meta's Chief AI Scientist, LeCun sees doomerism as largely uninformed

• AI Doomerism Is a Decoy - The Atlantic

  ## Site Navigation ## Sections games promo icon ## The Print Edition Audio Crossword Puzzle Magazine Archive Your Subscription # AI Doomerism Is a Decoy Big Tech’s warnings about an AI apocalypse are distracting us from years of actual harms their products have caused. Illustration of a human skull floating above a robotic hand [...] At least some of the extinction statement’s signatories do seem to earnestly believe that superintelligent machines could end humanity. Yoshua Bengio, who signed the statement and is sometimes called a “godfather” of AI, told me he believes that the technologies have become so capable that they risk triggering a world-ending catastrophe, whether as rogue sentient entities or in the hands of a human. “If it’s an existential risk, we may have one chance, and that’s it,” he said.

• From Horses To AI Agents: Why AI Doomerism Misses The Real ...

  The fear that AI might one day overpower humanity and cause mass unemployment or even extinction has become a popular narrative. AI doomerism has found a platform in public discourse, with influential figures sounding alarms about runaway superintelligence. But while these concerns generate headlines and Hollywood plots, they also risk distracting from the very real, very immediate benefits AI is delivering to the business world. [...] Today, we're witnessing a similar shift with artificial intelligence (AI). The rise of vertical AI agents—purpose-built, domain-specific AI systems—is the new engine of productivity. While a vocal minority raises concerns about "AI doomerism" and existential risk, the real revolution is already underway in industries such as customer service and sales, quietly and powerfully changing how businesses operate.

• AI Doomerism Is Bullshit - by David Pinsof

  Now you might think that settles it. AI doomerism is a convoluted web of dubious assumptions, so let’s stop taking it seriously. But a lot of brilliant people do take it seriously, and they’re probably not convinced yet. Maybe they’re still under the impression that intelligence is a generic blob because of IQ research. Or maybe they’re so impressed by ChatGPT that they think our brains are basically the same thing—bayesian blank slates that were somehow left unwritten-upon by millions of years [...] Time for a recap. Here it is, AI doomerism in a nutshell: Intelligence is one thing? It’s in the brain? It’s on a single continuum? It can help you achieve any goal? It has barely any limits or constraints? AIs have it? AIs have been getting more of it? An AI will soon get as much (or more of it) than us? Such a (super)human-level AI will become good at every job? And it will become good at ending humanity? [...] doomers’ assumptions close to 0% likely. But even if you give each assumption a 50% chance of being correct—which is what a good rationalist should do in situations of uncertainty—that still means the odds of AI doomerism being bullshit are 99.8% (.5 x .5 x .5 x .5 x .5 x .5 x .5 x .5 x .5 = .002).