Sam Altman says "We should trade off a lot of liberty for safety" over AI safety trade-offs

OpenAI chief Sam Altman told interviewer David Senra he worries that advanced AI will fall under the control of a small number of companies or people, leaving most of society without influence over how it transforms life. He also said AI might someday slip beyond human command, but he fears that anxieties about such dangers could drive a public willingness to surrender freedoms for protection. The publication suggested Altman was implicitly referring to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, described as a vocal proponent of AI safeguards and regulation. Altman argued instead that people should collectively steer AI’s direction, and he predicted the economic shift from AI would be substantial but gradual. His remarks highlight a deeper industry disagreement over regulation, openness, and the future governance of powerful AI.