Congress gripped by AI panic after doomsday warnings

Anthropic insiders' warnings this week that AI could end humanity in the next decade have members of Congress frantically seeking answers and trying to cobble together some kind of response.Why it matters: Federal lawmakers are at the "concepts of a plan" stage at this point, with congressional leaders showing little apparent urgency to mobilize. Some rank-and-file members in both parties say something must be done: "We should absolutely act, and act with urgency," Rep. Johnny Olszewski (D-Md.) told Axios.Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) wrote Wednesday in a post on X that "Congress needs to convene a special session on AI and what the future of the U.S. looks like."Driving the news: Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon kicked off the frenzy Tuesday with a post on X declaring that "the people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade."Coxon quit his job at the AI giant after just four months to publicly raise the alarm about the dangers of the technology, giving up his equity in the process, Axios' Madison Mills reported.His warning was echoed by several current Anthropic employees, with one, Evan Hubinger, responding on X that "we really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans!""AI developers believe their technology could cause human extinction," wrote another, Samuel Marks. "This could happen in the next few years."State of play: Dozens of members of Congress — mostly Democrats, but a handful of Republicans as well — have since called for urgent action and floated a wide variety of legislative responses.Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), one of House Democrats' most vocal advocates for AI regulations, is pushing his bipartisan bill to require AI developers to build a human-activated "kill switch" as part of any AI system.Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) "will soon be introducing legislation ... to pause advanced AI and ban superintelligence altogether."Others called for a more cautious approach, with Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas) writing that "we need AI to flourish" and calling for "deliberate, thoughtful, and prudent policymaking" to mitigate its risks.Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) proposed a bipartisan AI Select Committee, something Lieu has also privately pitched to House Democratic leadership, according to sources familiar with the matter.House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has not yet come to a decision on whether to pursue the idea if Democrats win the majority, sources said.Some members have privately bristled at the proposal because the panel may clash with existing House committees on jurisdiction, but most sources suggested it is widely supported and has a decent chance of being implemented.Reality check: House Republican leaders, who control both chambers of Congress, have not given any indication that they are treating this as a pressing matter.The House is set to be in session for just four more days before Election Day, with lawmakers meeting on Ca