Rogue AI aren’t science fiction anymore

The same basic premise became an influential strand of AI safety research. Researchers and theorists like Nick Bostrom and Eliezer Yudkowsky warned that sufficiently capable systems might pursue goals in ways their creators had not anticipated, and potentially resist efforts to contain or control them. Fringe notions like machine sentience and consciousness were not requirements for the kinds of risks they discussed. It was hardly the whole of AI safety, but it was influential and helped shape the field as it professionalized. That line of thinking remains visible among researchers who went on to work at, or lead, safety efforts at companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind, as well as at smaller safety organizations, academic centers, and major philanthropic funders.