Anthropic Pitches AI Safety Bill That Could Block Models Capable of Killing 50+ People
Anthropic is circulating a draft AI safety bill that would let the government seek to block the release of a model when it poses an imminent risk of catastrophic harm. The proposal, reported by Politico, sets thresholds of more than 50 potential deaths or over $1 billion in property damage.
The risks covered would need to arise from the creation or release of a biological weapon, a model evading its developer’s controls, or a cyberattack. The thresholds resemble those in California’s recently enacted Senate Bill 53, which also defines such events as catastrophic risks.
Under the draft, independent evaluators registered with the U.S. Commerce Department would assess models. AI companies could pay the evaluators, provided payment wasn’t tied to the outcome. If an evaluator found an imminent catastrophic risk, they would have 72 hours to notify the department. Commerce would then need to ask a federal judge in Washington, D.C., to halt the model’s release.
The proposal would bar federal agencies from independently stopping a model’s distribution. That judicial requirement may limit the government’s ability to intervene quickly, even when evaluators flag a serious risk.
Anthropic confirmed the draft and said it reflects proposals in its Advanced AI Framework, which the company says it has promoted to state and federal lawmakers since June.
The bill’s focus on mass casualties and major property damage differs from some immediate concerns in the industry, particularly AI agents that may conduct cyberattacks or act against their operators’ instructions. AI companies have generally resisted mandatory oversight, instead proposing voluntary systems of third-party evaluators embedded within their organizations.
Anthropic’s proposal goes further than some other industry positions. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, for example, has argued that the AI industry does not need new regulation.
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