WIRED: The American Left Is Splitting Over AI Doom — and What Regulation Should Target

nordicinst · x · 2026-09-18

WIRED reports an ideological split on the American left over AI: those who want regulation can't agree on how worried to be or what to regulate.

After ex-Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon warned about industry existential risk, NYC DSA's Tech Action Working Group posted that 'AI alarmism and AI hype are the same story,' arguing that amplifying frontier labs' doomsday claims empowers AI companies and distracts from present harms — calling AI the latest tool of capitalist exploitation. The post drew 25,000+ likes and fierce backlash. The piece also touches on differing Swedish and European regulatory approaches, capturing the structural tension between 'current harms' and 'existential risk' camps in AI policy.

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