Photo via ABC News (US)

OpenAI CEO calls for AI pacing as Trump insists he's not downplaying risk

Read the original at ABC News (US) ↗
Cite

Shalvey, K., & Chang, E. (2026, September 14). OpenAI CEO calls for AI pacing as Trump insists he's not downplaying risk. ABC News (US). https://abcnews.com/Politics/openai-ceo-calls-ai-pacing-trump-insists-downplaying/story?id=136416814

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

ABC News (US) · collected 2026-09-14 · by Kevin Shalvey, Emily Chang

Quick Summary

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has called for a cautious pace in developing artificial intelligence (AI) technology to prevent it from outstripping safety measures and oversight. Meanwhile, President Trump emphasized the potential benefits of AI while downplaying risks, asserting that the U.S. is leading the global race against China. Vice President JD Vance expressed concern about regulating AI “smartly” without overreach, echoing recent warnings from former AI researcher Jacob Coxon who resigned citing irresponsible practices by tech companies.
Written by AI on 2026-09-14, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

President Trump dismissed growing concerns about the potential dangers of artificial intelligence (AI), asserting that there is no need for additional regulation or "guardrails" on AI development. In posts on social media and comments to reporters, he claimed that the United States already has a sufficient safeguard in his presidency, stating, “The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT.” Trump also accused unnamed forces of exaggerating risks and engaging in a "SICK conspiracy" against AI companies. This stance contrasts with calls from leading scientists and tech CEOs like Dario Amodei from Anthropic and Sam Altman from OpenAI, who advocate for slowing down the pace of AI development due to safety concerns. The disagreement comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to visit Washington on September 24 for an official summit where AI will be a key topic of discussion between the two nations.

Written for “Trump AI Rants Condemning Critics” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 40 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Trump AI Rants Condemning Critics
Politics · 41 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 14% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Semafor
Hedges 1 of 4 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe different aspects of AI safety concerns and responses, not a single specific incident.”
CBS News
Hedges 10 of 37 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different perspectives and positions regarding AI risks and development pace by various figures, not a single specific incident.”
CBS News
Hedges 2 of 3 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles cover different events related to AI development and safety concerns, not a single specific incident.”
CBS News
Hedges 0 of 1 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different CEOs calling for AI safety measures in separate interviews.”
Noahpinion
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 21 of 117 claims
“The articles discuss different aspects of AI safety concerns and statements made by industry leaders, not the same specific incident.”
NBC News
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 10 of 37 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of AI risk and development; Article A focuses on warnings by former Anthropic and Google researchers, while Article B covers a statement by OpenAI's CEO and comments from President Trump.”
CBS News
Hedges 1 of 21 claims Outlet record 66/100
Semafor
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 1 of 3 claims Outlet record 60/100
Reason
Hedges 5 of 35 claims Outlet record 67/100
“The articles discuss similar themes but report on different statements made by different executives at separate times.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 2 of 44 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles discuss different meetings and viewpoints on AI: one involves OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and President Trump, while the other is about a Democratic summit in Washington.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
43
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
14%
6 of 43 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
70/100
ABC News (US)'s corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
41
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-14 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

ABC News (US) · 1245 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Kevin Shalvey
10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs warned Americans in the Middle East to "exercise heightened vigilance due to the complex security environment," saying Iran or its proxies could target Americans or U.S. interests "throughout the world." "Iranian-supported Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions," the department said on Monday.
🔮 Leo on Sunday said he wished to express "special gratitude" to the medical staff at Gemelli, saying, "This experience has made me feel, in a special way, the closeness to all those who are going through illness and a medical condition." "Now that I have overcome this delicate phase, as you know, I will gradually resume my activities, always with God’s help and your prayers," he said.
2026-10-18 · assertive framing · Pope Leo leads Vatican prayer, thanks hospital staff
🔮 The Vatican said his recovery at Rome's Gemelli Hospital was expected to last about a week.
🔮 600,000 without power in Ukraine as Russia launches missile and drone attack, Zelenskyy says The outages could become more widespread, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
🔮 Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, joined others in the artificial intelligence industry in saying that his company would welcome a slower development pace for AI to ensure that the technology's capabilities don't "get ahead of alignment and monitoring," as President Donald Trump said there would be "more good than bad" from the technology.
🔮 "We cannot yet determine whether the victims are still inside the vessel or whether they may be some distance away from the location of the vessel," Dudy Purwagandhi, Indonesia's transport minister, told reporters during a press conference in Banjarmasin, in Indonesia's South Kalimantan province, where he was monitoring the ship's evacuation.
🔮 Iran will not export "a single drop of oil" as long as the U.S. continues its "economic war" again the country, an Iranian official said Sunday.
Also by Kevin Shalvey
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 10 articles by Kevin Shalvey →
Emily Chang
9 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The Times said the effort to find a spoiler candidate -- who could potentially siphon votes from Sen. Sullivan, thus benefiting Peltola -- was internally referred to as the ballot composition project.
🔮 She said the results of the bar exam were "somewhat inconsequential" because she knew she would be moving to China afterward where she worked in international transaction law.
🔮 Asked how long the suspension will be in place, Vance said it will "last as long as it needs to" and added that the administration has "a number of tools to suspend it indefinitely" if needed.
🔮 President Donald Trump announces creation of 'Super Intelligence Force' AI task force President Donald Trump formally announced the creation of what he called a “Super Intelligence Force,” an AI task force that he says will work to promote AI dominance while also protecting American lives and interests.
🔮 This comes after President Donald Trump told ABC's Rachel Scott last month that the new plane would be sent away to get "maxed out" with increased security measures this month and that the process would take about 60 days.
🔮 The president's son held his May wedding at an exclusive island in the Bahamas, with the oligarch -- Umar Kremlev -- footing a large portion of the bill for the events later that weekend, according to records reviewed by ProPublica as well as three people familiar with the event who spoke with the outlet.
🔮 Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, joined others in the artificial intelligence industry in saying that his company would welcome a slower development pace for AI to ensure that the technology's capabilities don't "get ahead of alignment and monitoring," as President Donald Trump said there would be "more good than bad" from the technology.
🔮 The motion also points to the demolition of the White House East Wing, which happened without notice and before courts could weigh in.
🔮 “If the action taken in this proclamation does not result in a lower sale price of imported ground beef, I may end the action taken in this proclamation in order to, among other things, prevent a windfall to foreign producers,” he wrote in the proclamation.
Also by Emily Chang
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 9 articles by Emily Chang →

Topics

Anthropic China Ireland OpenAI Washington

Subjects

OpenAI ORG · 5× Trump PERSON · 5× Altman PERSON · 3× Anthropic ORG · 3× China GPE · 3× Coxon PERSON · 2× Jeffries PERSON · 2× Sam Altman PERSON · 2× Vance PERSON · 2× Washington GPE · 2×

Narrative

Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, joined others in the artificial intelligence industry in saying that his company would welcome a slower development pace for AI to ensure that the technology's capabilities don't "get ahead of alignment and monitoring," as President Donald Trump said there would be "more good than bad" from the technology.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-14
🔮 Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, joined others in the artificial intelligence industry in saying that his company would welcome a slower development pace for AI to ensure that the technology's capabilities don't "get ahead of alignment and monitoring," as President Donald Trump said there would be "more good than bad" from the technology.
2026-09-14 · ABC News (US)
OpenAI CEO calls for AI pacing as Trump insists he's not downplaying risk · assertive framing

Claims (43 extracted, 6 hedged)

OpenAI CEO calls for AI pacing as Trump insists he's not downplaying risk AI development is "walking a narrow middle path," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said. asserted
Altman → call → path
Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, joined others in the artificial intelligence industry in saying that his company would welcome a slower development pace for AI to ensure that the technology's capabilities don't "get ahead of alignment and monitoring," as President Donald Trump said there would be "more good than bad" from the technology. asserted
Trump → join → technology
The president, who spoke with reporters on Sunday as he traveled back to Washington from Ireland, said he wouldn't downplay concerns about AI advancements. asserted
he → speak → advancements
He also sought to position the AI race as a competition between the United States and other countries -- including China. asserted
He → seek → China
"I've said it from the beginning," Trump said. asserted
Trump → say → beginning
"Whoever wins AI -- and we're leading by a lot. asserted
we → win → lot
Whoever wins AI wins." asserted
wins → win → AI
In a social media post on Monday, Trump reiterated the message, saying "The only control or 'guardrails' that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!" asserted
U.S.A. → reiterate → spades
He added that there is a "SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data Centers, and the only one that is happy about it is China,” and that the U.S. is "leading China" as well as other countries in the technology. asserted
U.S. → add → technology
"Don’t kill the Golden Goose!" Trump wrote in another Monday social media post. asserted
Trump → kill → post
Vice President JD Vance said Monday that the the administration is "concerned" about the technology, but any regulations that may occur need to be done "smartly" -- with the current situation feeling like a "Trojan horse." uncertain
situation → say → horse
It's something that we're concerned by, but we want to make sure that we actually regulate smartly, and we're thoughtful about the risk here. asserted
we → concern → risk
I have to say, just personally, I feel a little bit weird about the fact that you have so many Frontier AI tech companies kind of coming to the government and begging the government to regulate them — it feels a little bit to me like a bit of a Trojan horse," Vance said. asserted
Vance → have → horse
The comments from Altman, Trump and Vance followed a warning issued last week by Jacob Coxon, a former safety researcher for Anthropic and OpenAI, two prominent tech companies, who said that he was resigning from Anthropic. asserted
he → follow → Anthropic
Coxon said in a social media post that neither Anthropic nor OpenAI "is acting responsibly. asserted
Anthropic → say → post
They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives." asserted
They → race → lives
He also highlighted the fear within the industry about the potential for an AI takeover. asserted
He → highlight → takeover
"The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade," Coxon wrote. uncertain
Coxon → build → decade
Altman said late on Sunday that his company would welcome a federal framework "that sets consistent safety requirements for frontier AI. asserted
that → say → AI
" "But we do not believe we need to wait for an anti-trust exemption or legislation to begin the work of providing this confidence," Altman said on social media. asserted
Altman → believe → media
"Consistent rules to manage frontier risk so that we can maximize the benefits are a good idea (and we are excited by ideas like independent auditors)." asserted
we → manage → auditors
That statement came after House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Sunday that lawmakers need to take urgent action on the growing threat of AI. asserted
lawmakers → come → AI
"We certainly need to begin to act urgently to address the challenges that exist," Jeffries said on ABC News' “This Week with George Stephanopoulos." asserted
Jeffries → need → Stephanopoulos
"We should take decisive action now so that we can slow down, as the CEOs have recently acknowledged, slow down the pace of development in order to protect the American people and ensure that AI is proceeding safely," Jeffries added. asserted
Jeffries → take → people
Lawmakers from both chambers return to Washington this week for the final legislative push before the November midterm elections, a renewed focus on regulating artificial intelligence is also likely to come following reports this week that raise significant concerns about AI security. asserted
that → return → security
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have demanded information from OpenAI and launched investigations. asserted
Lawmakers → demand → investigations
Altman on Sunday detailed "two ways AI progress could go very badly and that we must avoid." uncertain
we → detail → that
The first, he said, would be an "unacceptable" loss of control over AI. asserted
he → say → AI
The second, Altman said, would be to "end up in a world with too much concentration of power." asserted
Altman → say → power
"If an extraordinarily powerful AI is used by one person or company to impress their worldview onto everyone else, the results could be extremely dystopian," he said. uncertain
he → use → everyone
"Avoiding these two threats requires walking a narrow middle path; for example, one country could gain too much power. uncertain
country → avoid → power
Another example is one lab ending up with too much power." asserted
example → end → power
Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, published a blog post last week, in which he said that "we must pace the frontier," as in slow the pace of AI development. asserted
we → publish → development
"We must slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI models," he wrote. asserted
he → slow → models
"Progress will still seem fast, and we must make wise use of the time we gain." asserted
we → seem → time
Altman on Sunday said, "When we talk about 'pacing', we do not mean 'stopping'." asserted
we → say → pacing
"Progress has been rapid and will continue to be. asserted
Progress → continue → ?
But it should be slower than it otherwise could be; interventions like safety cases and monitoring have significant costs," he wrote. uncertain
he → have → costs
"Pacing will be well worth this cost; no amount of American competitive pressure should justify recklessness, or let capabilities get ahead of alignment and monitoring. asserted
capabilities → justify → alignment
" "Where we will need the help of our government is for international coordination," he added. asserted
he → need → coordination
…and 3 more, not listed.
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support