NPR Politics is reporting that the debate over whether technology companies should slow artificial intelligence development has become a political flashpoint and is on the agenda at this week's meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
It said the issue gained momentum after Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon quit last week, saying the biggest AI companies are "gambling with our lives" by racing toward building self-improving AI. NPR said other employees agreed and aired fears the technology could threaten human existence if it advances enough to escape its creators' control. It said the CEOs of Anthropic and OpenAI soon endorsed calls for a slowdown, while the industry urged governments worldwide to set rules of the road.
NPR said it is not clear how much appetite there is in the U.S. for AI regulation. It said Trump, who casts any curbs on AI as a threat to America's dominance in the AI race with China, brushed off existential risk warnings as a "HOAX." House Speaker Mike Johnson also invoked competition with China and said responsibility for policing safety lies with the companies, not Congress, NPR said. It said most lawmakers have left town until after the November election, leaving no time for immediate action and no consensus on what Congress should do.
NPR said new polling from Gallup and the Special Competitive Studies Project found four in five Americans say the government should prioritize safety and data security, even if that slows AI advancement. It said the ball will be back in Congress's court after the midterms.
Separately, NPR is reporting that Trump-backed groups have launched a $150 million advertising blitz in key Senate races, signaling that the majority party is on defense heading into November's midterms. It said the money followed months in which Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton was outspent in Texas by Democratic nominee James Talarico.
NPR also is reporting that the Supreme Court ruled against Trump, rejecting his efforts to enact new mail-in voting restrictions for the midterm election. It said the ruling means the U.S. Postal Service is expected to continue delivering ballots as usual, and that Trump criticized the conservative justices he nominated as "a shell of their original selves."
NPR said Republican Rep. Thomas Massie has moved to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the war in Iran, alleging Hegseth initiated the conflict unlawfully, defied Congress' order to withdraw and incurred unnecessary civilian casualties. It said Massie was defeated by a Trump-backed primary challenger in May.
NPR reported that Sen. Mitch McConnell returned to the Senate on Monday, ending a months-long medical absence. It said the Kentucky Republican was hospitalized in June after falling and briefly losing consciousness.
NPR said a high-stakes meeting between Trump and Xi is set to take place this week, but U.S. officials say some key logistical details remain undecided, potentially hampering planning for business deals, trade talks and technology discussions.