The technology community's attention has once again turned to the issue of artificial intelligence safety. This time, the discussion was fueled by an unexpected alliance: Elon Musk publicly supported Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who delivered sharp criticism of the current state of affairs in the industry. Musk, known for his skepticism toward AI, called the dialogue "interesting" and expressed hope that superintelligence would be "kind" to humanity. This statement came almost simultaneously with Amodei's comment, who admitted: "The most fair criticism of AI companies, including Anthropic, is that we still haven't fulfilled the main promise: to bring benefit to the world."
The dispute flared up after Silicon Valley investor Gavin Baker pointed out that rumors about Amodei spread faster than his actual achievements. However, the Anthropic head himself parried accusations of excessive pessimism, emphasizing that his public statements merely reflect the balance between risks and benefits that is often lost in short interviews. According to him, the work "Machines of Loving Grace" about the benefits of AI appeared precisely because the industry had painted too bleak a picture.
The Deep Root Cause of Distrust in AI
Amodei sees the root of the problem not in the technologies themselves, but in society's long-standing distrust of corporations, government institutions, and the IT industry. This suspicion, accumulated over decades, is automatically transferred to artificial intelligence. That is why he proposes radically changing the approach to regulation: instead of voluntary promises, mandatory testing of leading models. In June, he already appealed to the G7 with a warning about the danger of fragmented national rules that could create chaos in the global market.
Musk, for his part, strengthened the philosophical aspect of the dispute. Repeating Naval Ravikant's idea that "you cannot create a god and put it on a leash," he effectively admitted: if humanity loses control over superintelligence, all that remains is to rely on its goodwill. This is not just an abstract discussion — it is a question of who will hold the levers of power in the new technological era.
Two Paths to Safety
As solutions, Amodei considers two approaches: pre-screening of models, proposed by the Trump administration, and the creation of a regulator modeled on FINRA, an idea from Demis Hassabis of Google DeepMind. Both options have merit, but for now the industry is stalling. Notably, Musk, who previously criticized OpenAI's closed nature, sees in Anthropic an alternative development path — more open and safety-oriented.
However, Amodei himself avoids loud slogans like "AI will cure cancer." His personal motivation runs deeper: his father died of hepatitis C shortly before effective drugs became available. He is confident that AI in biology can cure most diseases within 5–10 years, but the real benefit lies in actual treatment, not marketing promises. Significantly, Anthropic is already collaborating with Pfizer, viewing AI as key infrastructure for medicine.
My analysis: This alliance between Musk and Amodei is a landmark signal for the market. If two such different players agree on the need for strict control, it means the industry has truly reached a critical point. For crypto investors, this is also a reminder: in an era when technologies are becoming unmanageable, the value of decentralized and transparent systems (including blockchain) will only grow. The question is whether we will manage to build protective mechanisms before the "kindness" of AI becomes the only guarantee of our safety.