Sam Altman Says Society Must Accept AI Harms for Its Benefits
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman argues the world should tolerate hacks and scams as trade-offs for AI's upside, drawing swift critic backlash.
OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman is calling on regulators to take a hands-off approach to artificial intelligence, arguing publicly that society should accept "bad things" — including hacks, scams, and other harms — as an unavoidable cost of the technology's broader benefits. The remarks, made in a recent interview, drew immediate criticism from advocates and observers who have long warned that major AI developers prioritize growth over safety.
Altman's comments arrive at a particularly fraught moment for OpenAI. The company is facing renewed scrutiny after a senior safety expert resigned over the weekend, publicly stating that OpenAI's internal "culture is broken." The departure adds to a pattern of high-profile exits from the company's safety and alignment teams, intensifying questions about how seriously the organization weighs risk against rapid deployment.
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The OpenAI CEO's framing — essentially a cost-benefit argument for minimal regulatory intervention — reflects a broader posture among leading AI firms that has frustrated policymakers and researchers who argue that voluntary restraint is insufficient. Critics contend that framing societal harms as acceptable trade-offs effectively shifts the burden of risk onto the public rather than onto the companies profiting from the technology.
Altman did not specify what regulatory framework he considers appropriate, but his push for a "light touch" aligns with positions OpenAI and peers have taken in Washington and Brussels as governments move to codify AI oversight rules. The tension between innovation-friendly lobbying and safety-focused governance is expected to intensify as AI capabilities advance and real-world incidents accumulate.
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