Jon Stokes accuses Nat Torkington of conflating anti-rationalist politics with anti-AI-safety
nptacek · x · 2026-09-08
A notable AI-safety community spat: Nat Torkington pushed a piece questioning why rationalists are 'more concerned right now' about catastrophic AI risks. Jon Stokes pushed back sharply, alleging two sleights of hand: rationalists care about existential risks, not mere catastrophic ones, and the phrase implies they cared less in the past. Stokes argues Nat is deliberately conflating opposition to a 'NorCal doomsday ideology' with opposition to AI safety itself.
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