Carl Feynman lists hypothetical 'cheap ultradestructive' AI weapons, from engineered plagues to U-235 extraction
zetalyrae · x · 2026-10-06
- Asked for examples of "cheap, ultradestructive weapons," Carl Feynman sketched scenarios: a persuasive AI that out-argues most adults one-on-one at billions-scale, steering people toward mass violence, self-harm, or coordinated infertility; a filter that extracts U-235 from seawater; detonating lithium deuteride with ordinary materials; botulinum-injecting mosquitoes; blights wiping out rice, corn, and wheat; a slow-acting toxin seeded into common foods; a virus combining measles-level transmissibility with AIDS-style delayed fatality.
- He concedes each may prove scientifically impossible, but argues there's no reason to assume all of them are — his point is that advanced AI could unlock mass destruction at near-zero cost.
- Speculative AI-risk argument, not a technical disclosure.
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