At AI ground zero, Sam Altman tries to balance fear and FOMO

In many ways, it was an awkward moment for Sam Altman to stride on to the stage in San Francisco. Yet as the crowd of artificial intelligence engineers whooped and a swarm of cute cartoon dots flashed behind him, the threats about the end of the world faded into the background. The AI show must go on.

Sitting down with AFR Weekend for a post-keynote chat, the most recognisable face of the AI era betrayed no fear that his company’s invention could wreak havoc on humanity. Instead, he performed an expert balancing act – weighing earnest caution against excitement for the potential of his creation.

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