AI slowdown debate: first-mover advantages make enforceable pausing a classic defection problem

taherdhanera · x · 2026-09-13

Filmmaker RGV questions whether an AI slowdown could ever be verifiably enforced—labs could just promise and not deliver. The reply argues a slowdown is technically possible but not enforceable where it matters: the first to cross key capability thresholds gains enormous economic, military, and prestige advantages, creating a classic defection problem where even labs preferring a slower pace keep going if they fear rivals will. Next-gen models could be trained in secret or relabeled as "safety research."

Related event: Game Theory Shows Why AI Slowdown Pledges Won't Hold(3 posts)→

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