OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says the world is right to be afraid of AI influence but that it can benefit humanity like no other technology before it

Date:
Tue, 15 Sep 2026 22:23:03 +0000

Description:
Sam Altman opens up on Hugging Face accident, the future of AI and humanity, and much more.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Sam Altman admits AI
development may require greater control Altman references Hugging Face "accident" as something which might cause wider distrust However Altman said he still believes AI technology can greatly benefit humanity as a whole
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has admitted that the rapid pace of development in the AI industry is rightfully scaring some people, and that more controls might
be necessary.

Speaking at Dreamforce 2026 , Altman was quizzed by Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff on a variety of topics, giving his opinion on not just the most
recent incidents in the world of technology, but where the future of AI could go next. "This could go wrong" Altman and Benioff's wide-ranging conversation began with the latter asking the former for his view on "what's been going
on" concerning recent controversies in the AI industry. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

This included the widely-reported Hugging Face hack, as well as increasing calls for greater AI regulation in recent weeks.

"People have been talking about the potential downsides or serious risks of
AI for some time, Altman said, noting that the increased capabilities of models have meant people are paying more attention than ever before. You may like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is worried about AI being controlled by just a few powerful players OpenAI CEO Sam Altman lays out his company's vision as it opens a 'third phase' 5 things you need to know about the big AI 'slowdown' battle

Altman also highlighted the recent Hugging Face accident, which he later described as obviously a terrifying incident, as raising awareness among the wider world as to what AI is capable of.

It doesn't take as much imagination as it used to, to imagine how this could go wrong, he pointed out, adding that he would like to know that companies dont intend to use their models for nefarious means - there should be no qualifier on that, he pointed out. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news
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Altman also highlighted the real fear that some companies working in AI could get too much power and be able to influence the economy.

I think the world is right to be afraid of this, he pointed out. Future hopes However it wasnt all doom and gloom, as Altman noted that OpenAI was navigating a narrow path with pragmatism, steadiness and consistency. What to read next Googles AI chief warns of growing AGI risks 'We're going through a new industrial revolution': Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei share differing views on AI at Dreamforce 2026 Anthropic CEO calls for slowing down AI development and warns that AI agents could take over the entire internet

People are now saying, this seems pretty important, so let's get it right...and we will get it right, by the way, I'm very confident in our ability to do this. The world should trust that we are going to do the right thing, because it is the right thing, and we know the magnitude of this.

Altman was also confident that despite the continuing advances of AI, he had high hopes for the future of humanity, noting that while "people don't care that much what a machine does...we have a wonderful ability of being obsessed with other people.

However this might still involve some tough work, as society and people would need to uplift themselves very fast to get all the advantages of technology - but this seems very achievable to me, Altman added. Looking forward Overall though, Altman noted that the degree that people care about other people is a major positive, and predicted that "we will stay in an extremely
human-centric world, no matter what technology does.

AI will help with this progress, though, with Altman saying that although the technology is capable of incidents such as the Hugging Face hack, it is also possible to use AI to defend against such attacks.

We have to (use AI to defend) to get the prize of curing diseases, giving people this incredible creativity, this human entrepreneurship that I think
is coming.

I think people, with this technology in their hands, can live a much better version of their lives.

Benioff closed out the session by asking what he hoped the legacy of his company would be, with Altman noting that the company had set out on an "insane mission" to achieve AGI, and that it had only scratched the surface" of building great products".

There is no doubt there will be more technological wonders by 2030, and they'll be big ones, he added, highlighting the fact that you can talk to a computer and it knows what you want, understand your company and take action, is one of the most profound changes to how we use technology that I've ever seen...this is one of the moments that feels like you're in a movie (and) I think this will transform the way we work and use computers. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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