Bipartisan push for AI regulation gains momentum after researcher warns of extinction risk

A wave of congressional support for artificial intelligence regulation emerged this week following stark warnings from Jacob Coxon, a researcher who resigned from Anthropic after concluding that AI labs are "gambling with our lives."

Coxon, who previously worked at OpenAI, announced his departure from Anthropic on Tuesday in a post on X that accumulated more than 150 million views. He wrote that the people building AI "earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade." Evan Hubinger, Anthropic's alignment science lead, responded by estimating the risk of catastrophic AI outcomes above 10% over the next decade.

Congressional response accelerates

The warnings catalyzed action from lawmakers across party lines. Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., told CNBC on Friday that momentum has reached "a tipping point," adding that her phone "has rung off the hook this week with rank-and-file Democrats and Republicans who want to see action."

Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., wrote to Senate leadership on Tuesday requesting the creation of a bipartisan Senate Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence when the next Congress convenes. In his letter to Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Gallego argued that "jurisdiction over AI is scattered across multiple Senate committees, each with a focused lens but none with the full picture." He called for the committee to have subpoena power and a mandate to produce actionable legislative recommendations.

Rep. Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas, posted on X that the risks posed by AI cannot be dismissed by Congress. "Innovation and safety are not mutually exclusive," he wrote. "We can achieve both through deliberate, thoughtful, and prudent policymaking."

Existing legislative efforts

Several AI bills are already in motion, though none has advanced significantly. In July, Rep. Trahan and Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., introduced the FRONTIER Act, which would establish governing rules for advanced AI model deployment. The same day, Rep. Moran and Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., put forward the AI Kill Switch Act, requiring AI companies to maintain functioning mechanisms for halting or suspending their systems.

Earlier this month, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, announced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, which would temporarily pause advanced AI development until a federal regulator establishes safety rules.

Why it matters

The convergence of insider warnings from AI researchers and bipartisan congressional interest marks a potential inflection point for AI governance in the United States. Unlike previous technology debates that split along partisan lines, existential risk concerns appear to be generating genuine cross-party momentum. However, with both chambers largely on recess ahead of November's midterms, the prospects for any AI bill becoming law in the coming months remain remote.

President Donald Trump dismissed extinction concerns on Thursday, telling reporters that "if we don't win AI, we're going to be put in a very bad position." OpenAI's global affairs chief Chris Lehane published a blog post calling for "mandatory, capability-based national regulation," writing that "the AI policy window is open, for now."

These details were first reported by Quartz.