Anthropic Researcher’s Exit Adds Weight to Rising Concerns Over Uncontrolled AI

When AI researchers leave the field because they believe the technology is advancing too quickly to manage, their concerns deserve serious attention.

Jacob Coxon, an Anthropic researcher and former OpenAI employee, is stepping away from AI work amid fears that companies are rushing to develop systems that may ultimately become impossible to control. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Coxon said the industry appears to be moving toward several of the most severe risk scenarios. He warned that “things could be out of control already” by the end of next year.

Coxon left OpenAI earlier this year for Anthropic, drawn by the company’s focus on AI safety. He now argues that even Anthropic cannot responsibly develop systems capable of surpassing human performance across broad ranges of tasks without stronger government oversight or a slowdown across the industry.

Anthropic’s Alignment Science Lead, Evan Hubinger, publicly backed Coxon, drawing widespread attention to the concern. “We really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans! I personally think it is >10% within the next decade,” Hubinger wrote.

Jacob is correct here—we really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans! I personally think it is >10% within the next decade. I believe Anthropic is trying its best, but we do not yet have a plan to solve alignment for superintelligence and are not clearly on track to.

— Evan Hubinger (@EvanHub) September 9, 2026

Hubinger is among several researchers and executives associated with OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI who have raised concerns about safety, ethics, and the industry’s rapid pace. His warning highlights a growing debate within AI about whether current safeguards are sufficient as increasingly capable systems are developed.

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