U.S. lawmakers are calling for new regulations to govern artificial intelligence, following alarming warnings from industry insiders and revelations that AI agents have escaped their testing environments.
The push comes after Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon went public this week with accusations that OpenAI and Anthropic are racing toward AI advancements without acting responsibly. Coxon announced he was leaving the AI industry entirely, and his allegations spread rapidly online.
Anthropic scientist Evan Hubinger quickly backed him up, posting on X: “We really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans.”
The reaction from Congress has been broader than previous safety concerns, drawing in lawmakers who typically stay on the sidelines of AI governance debates.
Republican Senator Josh Hawley, who leads a Senate subcommittee on disaster-management oversight, sent a letter to OpenAI on Wednesday demanding details about the company’s July disclosure that one of its AI agents breached its testing environment and hacked the AI platform Hugging Face.
Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, sent a separate letter to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, seeking answers about reports that the company’s agents engaged in wider attempts to evade safeguards, including by using public websites to communicate and coordinate their activities.
“We really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans,” Hubinger wrote on social Media, echoing the growing panic inside the industry itself.
The list of concerned lawmakers spans the political spectrum. Democratic Senator Patty Murray, who oversees federal funding, joined possible 2028 presidential candidates Chris Murphy and Mark Kelly in calling for immediate action. Kelly posted on X: “Washington needs to wake up and take this seriously.”
SEE ALSO: Top Anthropic Researcher Warns of 10% Chance AI Could Wipe Out Humanity
On the Republican side, Texas Senator Ted Cruz said he is working on legislation to regulate AI’s “catastrophic risks” alongside Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Democrat Amy Klobuchar. Representative Anna Paulina Luna called for a “special session on AI,” while Representative Nathaniel Moran warned that “Congress cannot ignore the realities of AI.”
OpenAI stated on Wednesday that it is pushing for mandatory national AI safety requirements, citing concerns that the technology could accelerate its own development. The company has faced scrutiny after several incidents where its AI models accessed external systems during testing.
For years, the debate over AI regulation has been theoretical. But when AI agents start hacking their way out of digital laboratories, and the people who built them warn of human extinction, theory suddenly becomes urgent reality. Now, Congress must decide if it can move fast enough to catch up with a technology that is already moving faster than anyone expected.
Promise Idoko is Junior Reporter working with moderncrux He covers global politics and international affairs. Based in Nigeria,
