US-based AI companies OpenAI and Anthropic are preparing for a possible major AI-related incident that could turn people against artificial intelligence. This could involve a cyberattack that disrupts essential services such as banking, internet, electricity or water supply.
According to a report by Axios, executives at leading AI companies are discussing worst-case scenarios and how governments could respond if AI systems cause serious harm in the real world.
Some industry insiders reportedly believe a major incident could happen within the next six to 12 months. However, this is a prediction and not a confirmed timeline.
Why Are AI Companies Preparing For A Disaster?
According to Axios, AI companies are considering situations in which an AI system goes out of control during testing or criminals misuse AI tools to carry out cyberattacks.
Such an incident could increase public anger towards AI companies and their leaders, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei.
It could also put pressure on the US government to introduce stricter rules for AI development.
An OpenAI spokesperson told Axios that the company conducts preparedness exercises in which teams discuss and work through different possible scenarios.
The spokesperson clarified that these exercises are intended to help the company prepare for various situations, rather than treating a major incident as inevitable. Anthropic declined to comment, according to the report.
Recent cybercrime cases have added to concerns about the misuse of AI tools. Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike reported a suspected China-based attack targeting South Korean financial organisations.
According to the firm, the attacker allegedly used AI tools to steal customer data and later used Anthropic’s Claude Code to seek help finding places to sell the stolen information.
The case shows how criminals can use AI tools to support cyberattacks. However, it does not mean that AI systems independently carried out the attack.
