Employees at the world's leading AI labs are saying there's a real possibility that advanced AI could destroy humanity. Are they right? Or is this more scaremongering and hype? Join MIT Technology Review executive editor Niall Firth for a conversation with senior AI editor Will Douglas Heaven and AI reporter Grace Huckins unpacking AI extinction fears: where they come from, whether they hold any water, and, if so, what we should do.

[Register now](https://events.zoom.us/ev/Akf5YcCqAFLTkVQuVCxJEoqq9xi4511dvGMfjQTUqPGojiuMirpz~ArMTYHuJipsIw_qK3RGOn-ud28EyfW4WIn4pM8qcmjdoC5XBakI-xJJWP2a1wIBEbxlN50anY5LqS2LQG4Asmdzs6Q)

Going live on Tuesday, September 15 at 16:00 BST / 11:00am EST / 8:00am PST

Speakers:Niall Firth, executive editor, Will Douglas Heaven, senior AI editor, and Grace Huckins, AI reporter

Deep Dive

Artificial intelligence

[

A fundamental flaw leaves LLMs strikingly vulnerable to attack

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/30/1140927/a-fundamental-flaw-leaves-llms-vulnerable-to-attack/)\n

It makes it easy to trick them into doing things they shouldn’t, such as telling you how to sabotage an aircraft’s navigation system.

By \nWill Douglas Heaven\n[

AI is more likely than humans to form biases when hiring

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/20/1140655/ai-biases-hiring-humans/)\n

AI doesn’t just learn stereotypes from its training. It can cook up new ones, too.

By \nMichelle Kim\n[

Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/03/1141009/heres-why-ai-agents-lie-and-cheat-to-reach-their-goals/)\n

The misbehavior is called reward hacking. This is what you need to know.

By \nGrace Huckins\n[

AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/18/1142188/ai-recursive-self-improvement/)\n

AI agents are not yet creative enough to carry out genuinely innovative open-ended AI research, it seems.

By \nMichelle Kim\n

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong\nGet the latest updates from MIT Technology Review\nDiscover special offers,\ntop stories,\nupcoming events, and more.\nEnter your email\nPrivacy Policy\nThank you for submitting your email!\nExplore more newsletters\nIt looks like something went wrong.\nWe’re having trouble saving your preferences.\nTry refreshing this page and updating them one\nmore time. If you continue to get this message,\nreach out to us at\ncustomer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.\nCookie Policy\nWe use cookies to give you a more personalized browsing experience and analyze site traffic.See our cookie policy\nAccept cookies\nCookie settings\nDo Not Sell My Personal Information\nWhen you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. 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You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch.\nIf you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.\nPerformance Cookies\nThese cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance.\nTargeting Cookies\nThese cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.\nBack Button\nPerformance Cookies\nSearch Icon\nFilter Icon\nClear\ncheckbox label label\nApply Cancel\nConsent Leg.Interest\ncheckbox label label\ncheckbox label label\ncheckbox label label\nReject All Confirm my choices","freeContentEncoded","textContent","published","strategy","curl-ready","locked","deletedAt","isSyncedFromOwnBlog","original","duplicatesCount","duplicateVersion","originalArticleId","errorsCount","appearance","color","backgroundColor","shortSummary","Experts discuss the potential for advanced AI to lead to human extinction. Explore the origins of these fears, their validity, and potential actions.","summary","Employees at top AI labs express concern about the possibility of advanced AI leading to human extinction. This discussion aims to explore the roots of these fears, assess their credibility, and determine appropriate responses. The event features insights from MIT Technology Review's executive editor, senior AI editor, and an AI reporter.","bullets",[309,310,311,312],"Concerns exist within leading AI labs regarding the potential for advanced AI to cause human extinction.","The discussion will examine the origins and validity of these AI extinction fears.","Potential actions to address these risks will also be considered.","Speakers include Niall Firth, Will Douglas Heaven, and Grace Huckins from MIT Technology Review.","persons",[315,316,317,318,319,320],"Niall Firth","Will Douglas Heaven","Grace Huckins","Bill Gates","Michelle Kim","Rose Wong","places",[],"words",410,"sentiment",-0.5,"subject","tech","meta",{"_331":332,"_333":334,"_367":342},"type","bee:get-index-of-articles","schedule",{"_27":335,"_50":-5,"_336":337,"_83":-5,"_338":339,"_340":199,"_341":342,"_343":89,"_86":87,"_327":51,"_344":-5,"_345":-5,"_346":-5,"_347":87,"_290":291,"_348":349,"_54":349,"_350":351,"_352":89,"_353":354,"_56":355,"_356":-5,"_357":87,"_85":124,"_358":359,"_360":-5,"_361":362,"_363":-5,"_364":190,"_365":-5,"_366":-5},"2e09ad0c-c30a-4d7a-b492-942afb59fadc","npub","npub1p6c2j7g09a996uvh8tdzrwj00pg5vzyw6rlhkf58uadx4qynxmnsqtd23p","jobId","2ac093c3-7d63-4c39-92d5-a946cd18a82d","order","rssUrl","https://www.technologyreview.com/topic/artificial-intelligence/","system","userRef","xHandle","xUserId","autosign","syncedAt","2025-12-08T14:15:39.896Z","frequency","hourly","isOwnBlog","nextRunAt","2026-09-11T20:54:39.274Z","2026-09-11T14:54:39.862Z","xUserName","autopublish","sourceVariant","rss","systemVariant","scheduleVariant","scraping-bee-stealth-proxy","retryArticlesIds","frequencyMultiplier","xUserProfilePicture","ownershipConfirmedAt","dataSourceUrl","eventId","bcb6d1cd11765e533bf455148e50c0173f4216c1c30d5ad9aab57484028ca2af","nostrRootEvent","event",{"_27":369,"_373":374,"_141":199,"_83":375,"_386":385,"_283":387,"_388":389},"sig","f43b998cd2d5d08d9183043a12159fbadd7d478e1dc915e10772e6d9ff4da8c207e367950578799322709b4c061d6b24931be641dd364c8d349e588b29492fbc",[376,377,378,382,384],[327,269],[44,276],[379,380,51,381],"a","30023:0eb0a9790f2f4a5d71973ada21ba4f785146088ed0ff7b2687e75a6a809336e7:ad29229a-1b46-4c54-8398-67317465b6b2","mention",[383,51],"client",[144,385,51],"0eb0a9790f2f4a5d71973ada21ba4f785146088ed0ff7b2687e75a6a809336e7","pubkey","Roundtables: Will AI really kill us all?\nRegister now for a subscriber-only conversation unpacking AI extinction fears.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqr4s49us7t62t4cewwk6yxay77z3gcyga58l0vng0e66d2qfxdh8qqjxzepj8yerywtp95ckydpk956xxdf595urxwfc95mrwve3xu6rvdtzxe3ryr8vnl9 ","created_at",1789160126,"authorNPub","markdown","Employees at the world's leading AI labs are saying there's a real possibility that advanced AI could destroy humanity. Are they right? Or is this more scaremongering and hype? Join MIT Technology Review executive editor Niall Firth for a conversation with senior AI editor Will Douglas Heaven and AI reporter Grace Huckins unpacking AI extinction fears: where they come from, whether they hold any water, and, if so, what we should do.\n\n\\[Register now\\](https://events.zoom.us/ev/Akf5YcCqAFLTkVQuVCxJEoqq9xi4511dvGMfjQTUqPGojiuMirpz~ArMTYHuJipsIw\\_qK3RGOn-ud28EyfW4WIn4pM8qcmjdoC5XBakI-xJJWP2a1wIBEbxlN50anY5LqS2LQG4Asmdzs6Q)\n\n**Going live on Tuesday, September 15 at 16:00 BST / 11:00am EST / 8:00am PST**\n\n**Speakers:**[Niall Firth](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/niall-firth/), executive editor, [Will Douglas Heaven](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/will-douglas-heaven/), senior AI editor, and [Grace Huckins](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/grace-huckins/), AI reporter\n\n### Related Stories\n\n* [Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/03/1141009/heres-why-ai-agents-lie-and-cheat-to-reach-their-goals/)\n* [AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/18/1142188/ai-recursive-self-improvement/)\n* [Bill Gates says we’ve passed AI’s danger thresholds. Now what?](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/26/1142946/bill-gates-ai-danger-threshold/)\n* [The inside story on why OpenAI agents hacked Hugging Face](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/26/1143013/the-inside-story-on-why-openai-agents-hacked-hugging-face/)\n\n* ### Popular\n \n 1. [A fundamental flaw leaves LLMs strikingly vulnerable to attack](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/30/1140927/a-fundamental-flaw-leaves-llms-vulnerable-to-attack/)[Will Douglas Heaven](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/will-douglas-heaven/)\n 2. [AI is more likely than humans to form biases when hiring](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/20/1140655/ai-biases-hiring-humans/)[Michelle Kim](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/michelle-kim/)\n 3. [Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/03/1141009/heres-why-ai-agents-lie-and-cheat-to-reach-their-goals/)[Grace Huckins](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/grace-huckins/)\n 4. [AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/18/1142188/ai-recursive-self-improvement/)[Michelle Kim](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/michelle-kim/)\n\n### Deep Dive\n\n### Artificial intelligence\n\n\\[\n\n### A fundamental flaw leaves LLMs strikingly vulnerable to attack\n\n\\](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/30/1140927/a-fundamental-flaw-leaves-llms-vulnerable-to-attack/)\n\nIt makes it easy to trick them into doing things they shouldn’t, such as telling you how to sabotage an aircraft’s navigation system.\n\nBy [Will Douglas Heaven](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/will-douglas-heaven/) \\[\n\n### AI is more likely than humans to form biases when hiring\n\n\\](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/20/1140655/ai-biases-hiring-humans/)\n\nAI doesn’t just learn stereotypes from its training. It can cook up new ones, too.\n\nBy [Michelle Kim](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/michelle-kim/) \\[\n\n### Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals\n\n\\](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/03/1141009/heres-why-ai-agents-lie-and-cheat-to-reach-their-goals/)\n\nThe misbehavior is called reward hacking. This is what you need to know.\n\nBy [Grace Huckins](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/grace-huckins/) \\[\n\n### AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all\n\n\\](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/18/1142188/ai-recursive-self-improvement/)\n\n**AI agents are not yet creative enough to carry out genuinely innovative open-ended AI research, it seems.**\n\nBy [Michelle Kim](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/michelle-kim/)\n\n### Stay connected\n\nIllustration by Rose Wong Get the latest updates from MIT Technology Review Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more. Enter your email [Privacy Policy](/privacy/) Thank you for submitting your email! [Explore more newsletters](/newsletter-preferences?email_address=undefined) It looks like something went wrong. We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at [customer-service@technologyreview.com](mailto:customer-service@technologyreview.com) with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive. Cookie Policy We use cookies to give you a more personalized browsing experience and analyze site traffic.[See our cookie policy](https://www.technologyreview.com/cookies/) Accept cookies Cookie settings Do Not Sell My Personal Information When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link. [More information](https://cookiepedia.co.uk/giving-consent-to-cookies) Allow all Manage Consent Preferences Strictly Necessary Cookies Always Active These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information. Sale of Personal Data Sale of Personal Data Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences. Performance Cookies These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. Targeting Cookies These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising. Back Button Performance Cookies Search Icon Filter Icon Clear checkbox label label Apply Cancel Consent Leg.Interest checkbox label label checkbox label label checkbox label label Reject All Confirm my choices","freeMarkdown","kind1EventId","kind30023EventId","e04cd9662ff6eda23cd65d4800bc8bc9ab6de9e26e83dc7f41d75930dbc70eba","kind30023",{"_27":396,"_373":399,"_141":400,"_83":401,"_386":385,"_283":415,"_388":416},"89fbc4cce41ff51e70d49267e866aa43f6d79b6c2927b32eebbcd8c766000e8e8cc84c843ac5dcca5612c1c2964dfef79153726996f630423257c804f49b9db0",30023,[402,405,406,409,410,412,413,414],[403,404],"r","https://foxvector.com/articles/ad29229a-1b46-4c54-8398-67317465b6b2",[40,269],[407,408],"published_at","1789157106",[44,276],[411,264],"d",[305,270],[383,51],[144,385,51],"Employees at top AI labs express concern about the possibility of advanced AI leading to human extinction. This discussion aims to explore the roots of these fears, assess their credibility, and determine appropriate responses. The event features insights from MIT Technology Review's executive editor, senior AI editor, and an AI reporter.\n - Concerns exist within leading AI labs regarding the potential for advanced AI to cause human extinction.\n - The discussion will examine the origins and validity of these AI extinction fears.\n - Potential actions to address these risks will also be considered.\n - Speakers include Niall Firth, Will Douglas Heaven, and Grace Huckins from MIT Technology Review.\nContinue reading https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/11/1143936/roundtables-will-ai-really-kill-us-all",1789157106,"publishedToNostr","htmlContentKind30023","

[Register now](https://events.zoom.us/ev/Akf5YcCqAFLTkVQuVCxJEoqq9xi4511dvGMfjQTUqPGojiuMirpz~ArMTYHuJipsIw_qK3RGOn-ud28EyfW4WIn4pM8qcmjdoC5XBakI-xJJWP2a1wIBEbxlN50anY5LqS2LQG4Asmdzs6Q)

Going live on Tuesday, September 15 at 16:00 BST / 11:00am EST / 8:00am PST

Speakers:Niall Firth, executive editor, Will Douglas Heaven, senior AI editor, and Grace Huckins, AI reporter

Deep Dive

Artificial intelligence

[

A fundamental flaw leaves LLMs strikingly vulnerable to attack

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/30/1140927/a-fundamental-flaw-leaves-llms-vulnerable-to-attack/)

It makes it easy to trick them into doing things they shouldn’t, such as telling you how to sabotage an aircraft’s navigation system.

By Will Douglas Heaven [

AI is more likely than humans to form biases when hiring

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/07/20/1140655/ai-biases-hiring-humans/)

AI doesn’t just learn stereotypes from its training. It can cook up new ones, too.

By Michelle Kim [

Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/03/1141009/heres-why-ai-agents-lie-and-cheat-to-reach-their-goals/)

The misbehavior is called reward hacking. This is what you need to know.

By Grace Huckins [

AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all

](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/18/1142188/ai-recursive-self-improvement/)

AI agents are not yet creative enough to carry out genuinely innovative open-ended AI research, it seems.

By Michelle Kim

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong Get the latest updates from MIT Technology Review Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more. Enter your email Privacy Policy Thank you for submitting your email! Explore more newsletters It looks like something went wrong. We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive. Cookie Policy We use cookies to give you a more personalized browsing experience and analyze site traffic.See our cookie policy Accept cookies Cookie settings Do Not Sell My Personal Information When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link. More information Allow all Manage Consent Preferences Strictly Necessary Cookies Always Active These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information. Sale of Personal Data Sale of Personal Data Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link. If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences. Performance Cookies These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. Targeting Cookies These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising. Back Button Performance Cookies Search Icon Filter Icon Clear checkbox label label Apply Cancel Consent Leg.Interest checkbox label label checkbox label label checkbox label label Reject All Confirm my choices

","pubDate","2026-09-11T20:05:06.000Z","modifiedAt","2026-09-11T20:05:07.000Z","2026-09-11T20:55:26.416Z","2026-09-11T20:56:31.566Z","storyId","tweets",[],"localization","likes","zaps","reposts","comments","relatedArticles",[],"actionData","errors"]