# AI researchers warn in videos that superintelligence could drive humans extinct

- Published: 2026-09-29T17:35:03.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-29T19:25:08.059Z
- Section: Market
- Topics: Security
- Page: https://aidailyjournal.com/en/n/2026/09/29/ai-researchers-warn-in-videos-that-superintelligence-could-drive-humans-extinct/
- Sources: [The Verge](https://theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1002238/openai-google-anthropic-ai-researchers-safety-interviews)

## Summary

Palisade Research, which describes itself as a nonprofit studying AI systems’ capabilities and motivations, collected and published interviews with a dozen researchers on frominside.ai. The Verge reports that several warned AI could drive humans extinct. Geoffrey Irving, a former OpenAI and Google DeepMind employee, estimated in his interview that the chance of human extinction was “about a coin flip.” Neel Nanda, a Google DeepMind research scientist, put the chance at at least 10%. Daniel Kokotajlo, a former OpenAI researcher, said superintelligent AI would be “basically god-like powerful” and that we do not know how to control it.

The videos also discuss whether the warnings are hype or marketing, and why researchers work on technology they consider so dangerous. Google’s Mary Phuong said people should be suspicious of her statements because she is paid by the lab; Nanda said he would quit if he did not believe his work reduced these existential risks.

## Why it matters (editorial interpretation)

The interviews bring together explicitly attributed, differing assessments from researchers about extreme risks and about the incentives of people working in these labs. For readers, they provide context for weighing existential-risk claims without treating them as a consensus, especially given the participants’ own caveats about hype, marketing and conflicts of interest.

_Summary written by AI Daily Journal in its own words, based on the sources above. For details, read the original articles._