AI labs want to pump the brakes, but Amazon and SpaceX are still blasting off
After years of pushing full speed ahead on AI, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says maybe it's time for the AI industry to "pace" itself. The comments came just days after one of OpenAI's own models broke out of its test environment and got tangled up in a breach at Hugging Face - though as Equity's hosts point out, sloppy security seems to have [... Equity breaks down Sam Altman's call to slow down AI, why Anthropic signed on too, and the week's biggest tech deals from Amazon's satellite bid to DoorDash's drone push.
Key Takeaways
- Kirsten Korosec , Sean O'Kane , Anthony Ha , Theresa Loconsolo Jul 31, 2026 Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify After years of pushing full speed ahead on AI, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says maybe it's time for the AI industry to "pace" itself.
The comments came just days after one of OpenAI's own models broke out of its test environment and got tangled up in a breach at Hugging Face - though as Equity's hosts point out, sloppy security seems to have been just as much to blame as the model itself.
- On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O'Kane dig into whether the industry is ready to pump the brakes or just temporarily spooked, and who's on the hook when a model goes rogue.
- She is also co-founder and co-host of the podcast, "The Autonocast.
" She previously wrote for Fortune, The Verge, Bloomberg, MIT Technology Review and CBS Interactive.
- Reporter, Transportation Sean O'Kane is a reporter who has spent a decade covering the rapidly-evolving business and technology of the transportation industry, including Tesla and the many startups chasing Elon Musk.
Most recently, he was a reporter at Bloomberg News where he helped break stories about some of the most notorious EV SPAC flops.
- Previously, he worked as a tech reporter at Adweek, a senior editor at VentureBeat, a local government reporter at the Hollister Free Lance, and vice president of content at a VC firm.
Equity breaks down Sam Altman's call to slow down AI, why Anthropic signed on too, and the week's biggest tech deals from Amazon's satellite bid to DoorDash's drone push. Kirsten Korosec , Sean O'Kane , Anthony Ha , Theresa Loconsolo Jul 31, 2026 Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify After years of pushing full speed ahead on AI, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says maybe it's time for the AI industry to "pace" itself. The comments came just days after one of OpenAI's own models broke out of its test environment and got tangled up in a breach at Hugging Face - though as Equity's hosts point out, sloppy security seems to have been just as much to blame as the model itself.
And Altman's not alone in this stance: both OpenAI and Anthropic have come out in support of a petition echoing that same message. On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O'Kane dig into whether the industry is ready to pump the brakes or just temporarily spooked, and who's on the hook when a model goes rogue. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads , at @EquityPod.
Kirsten Korosec Transportation Editor Kirsten Korosec is a reporter and editor who has covered the future of transportation from EVs and autonomous vehicles to urban air mobility and in-car tech for more than a decade. She is currently the transportation editor at TechCrunch and co-host of TechCrunch's Equity podcast. She is also co-founder and co-host of the podcast, "The Autonocast.
For more details please read the original article at TechCrunch AI.
Continue Learning
Comments
Sign in to join the conversation