Protesters march on OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind to demand a pause in AI development

Protesters once again took to the streets of San Francisco, marching between the offices of OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind, demanding a halt to the development of more powerful artificial intelligence.

Saturday’s demonstration was organized by Stop the AI ​​racewent beyond AI safety to include concerns about job losses, the environmental impact of AI, rising housing costs in San Francisco, and the growing influence of big tech companies.

The march, organized by former AI researcher Michael Trazi, called on leading AI companies to stop training new AI models while keeping existing systems available. Protesters urged companies to redirect research toward AI safety and alignment so stronger safeguards are in place, while some protesters also called for stronger regulation at the local and state levels.

Tarazi said the group’s goals have changed since its first protest in March.

“I think earlier this year I wasn’t thinking about increasing political salience as much as I was thinking about persuading CEOs,” Trazi said. Decryption. “I think I made sure the CEOs actually listened, given the multiple blog posts and some exchanges I had with one of them. I also think holding protests is helpful to show people care.”

This demonstration comes on the heels of a previous halt to the AI ​​race He objects In March, when nearly 200 people marched between the offices of Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI to call for a coordinated pause on frontier AI development. Since then, the group has continued its campaign through protests and public advocacy.

Tarazi said he was encouraged by the support the movement has attracted since then.

“I was pleasantly surprised that the National Union of Healthcare Workers endorsed the protest and reposted it on their social media,” he said. “I was also surprised at how quickly other groups in the Bay Area, like AI Action, were able to get up to speed and work with us. I’m also very grateful to QuitGPT for helping to organize this.”

OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind did not immediately respond to requests for comment Decryption.

Organizers said they plan to continue calling for an international pause on frontier AI development while encouraging lawmakers to adopt stronger oversight of advanced AI systems.

The protest comes as concerns about the safety of artificial intelligence continue to draw scrutiny.

In May, OpenAI foot New ChatGPT security features are designed to better detect signs of self-harm and violence during conversations as the company has faced lawsuits and investigations over allegations that its chatbot mishandled dangerous interactions.

In June, the Donald Trump administration commander Anthropic to suspend access to Fable 5 and Claude Myths 5 Examples of potential cybersecurity risks. Earlier this month, the first independent UN scientific committee on artificial intelligence convened That’s it That scientists cannot rule out “catastrophic harm” as AI technology advances faster than scientific understanding and government oversight.