Time is running out. The only thing likely to stop AI companies barreling toward superintelligence is for there to be widespread realization among society at all its levels that this is not actually what we want. That means building public will and scientific clarity first, and only then moving ahead on anything that would concentrate world-altering power in a machine. This isn’t a casual slowdown; it’s an affirmative choice about what kind of future we are consenting to. If there isn’t strong public buy‑in and broad scientific consensus that it can be done safely and controllably, then pressing on would be reckless engineering and reckless governance. The right move is to hold off until those conditions are met, and to make creating those conditions the priority. (2025) source Unverified