Scott Bessent on Slow down AI development

Scott Bessent

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury (2025–present); founder of Key Square Group

Well, then they should slow down.

AI Verified (Oct 3, 2026)

Source:

Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury Secretary, interviewed by Courtenay Brown for Axios, “U.S. to propose emergency AI notification system with China,” October 3, 2026. Asked about AI executives warning that they could lose control of increasingly powerful models, Bessent replied: “Well, then they should slow down.”

20d ago

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Slow down AI development

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AI Verified The quote directly responds to warnings about losing control of increasingly powerful AI: “they should slow down,” covering the complete slowdown claim. · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5 · 20d ago

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AI Verified Recorded answer “for” matches Bessent’s direct recommendation that AI developers “should slow down.” · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5 · 20d ago

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AI Verified Axios’s October 3, 2026 report attributes the exact sentence to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in response to warnings about losing control of powerful AI. · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5 · 20d ago

replying to Scott Bessent