Silicon Valley executives including Amodei, Altman, and Musk support slowing AI development, but critics argue an AI freeze would entrench dominant firms like OpenAI and Anthropic while harming smaller competitors, with additional concerns about China gaining advantage without international cooperation.
Four plaintiffs filed a class-action antitrust lawsuit against Anthropic, OpenAI, and others, alleging they coordinated to slow AI development starting in July 2026, reducing consumer value. The defendants argue safety justification, but plaintiffs claim this substitutes collective restraint for accountability. The Trump administration opposed the proposal, while China criticized it as excluding Beijing from a purported global framework.
State attorneys general led by California's Rob Bonta settled their antitrust lawsuit against Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, clearing the way for the merger to close in early October. In exchange, Paramount committed to releasing 30 films annually in theaters and establishing an editorial independence board for CBS News and CNN. The deal, involving Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds and ties to President Trump, sparked political controversy over media concentration.
The article argues that the U.S. should regulate AI domestically without waiting for China to act first, drawing parallels to domestic environmental and safety regulations that protect citizens from harm regardless of international action. The author contends that an AI Regulatory Commission could address domestic harms similar to existing common law and criminal law, and that domestic regulation might even spur international agreements rather than hinder them.