AI leaders say they can't quantify the tech's risks during heated hearing

Leaders from OpenAI, Meta, Anthropic and Google said at a New York City Council hearing on Oct. 5 that they could not quantify the risks imposed by AI in a worst-case catastrophic scenario.

The hearing was held to introduce 10 pieces of legislation that would oversee the development, deployment and use of AI in New York City. The four companies named in the report are OpenAI, Meta, Anthropic and Google, each represented by leaders whose names the article did not give. The article attributed the statement to the companies' leaders collectively rather than to a named individual.

The article did not state which of the 10 pieces of legislation might advance, whether any vote was scheduled or taken, or how individual Council members responded to the testimony. It reported that the Council's stated aim is to oversee the development, deployment and use of AI in New York City, and that the companies' position is that the risks of a worst-case catastrophic scenario cannot be quantified. The article gave no further detail on the contents of the legislation. The hearing took place on Oct. 5 and involved all 51 members of the City Council.