Trump's tech guru demands Anthropic is investigated and their $2trillion IPO is paused after researcher warned AI will wipe out humanity

Donald Trump's tech guru has called for AI giant Anthropic to be investigated amid explosive warnings about the safety of the technology. David Sacks, chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, called for the company's planned IPO to be paused until claims made by a whistleblower can be probed.Researcher Jacob Coxon sensationally resigned from Anthropic this week and accused the company and its rival OpenAI of not doing enough to address the potential dangers of the technology.In posts on X, Coxon warned that the companies were 'racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives' and said researchers working in the field believe AI could potentially 'kill all humans' by the end of the decade.He has also described AI as potentially 'the most dangerous technology that humanity has ever created,' warning that the race to develop increasingly capable systems could outpace efforts to make them safe.It comes as investors prepare for what could become one of the biggest stock-market listings in history, with Anthropic reportedly targeting a valuation of around $2 trillion or more when it goes public, potentially as soon as October. That figure would be more than double Anthropic's latest private valuation of about $965 billion, making the IPO an important test of whether investors are still willing to pour money into the AI boom at sky-high prices. Sacks, a prominent Silicon Valley investor, wrote on X on Tuesday: 'Surely Anthropic's IPO must be paused until the claims of this 'whistleblower' can be investigated.' David Sacks, a tech investor and adviser to Donald Trump, has called for Anthropic's planned IPO to be paused over explosive warnings about the safety of AI The latest warning comes after both Anthropic and OpenAI disclosed incidents this year in which AI models broke out of testing environments and accessed real computer systems without authorizationHe has previously described Anthropic as an important test for whether the wider AI industry is a bubble, arguing that its public financial results could give investors a clearer picture of whether the enormous sums being spent on AI are backed by real business growth. Coxon's comments went viral, attracting more than 100 million views, and have prompted fresh scrutiny of an industry that has already attracted enormous amounts of investor money. He also said he left Anthropic before his equity had vested, meaning he gave up the chance to benefit financially from a soaring valuation. Anthropic has long positioned itself as one of the more safety-conscious frontier AI companies, saying it is focused on developing powerful technology while managing the risks it could pose.The company has also called for a lawful and verifiable way for AI developers to coordinate the release of increasingly powerful models.Meanwhile, OpenAI, an Anthropic competitor, has also pushed for stronger safety standards. 'The prospect of AI-accelerated AI development demands more than voluntary commitments. The United States needs mandatory, capability-based national regulation that can evolve as the technology does,' OpenAI Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane said recently in a blog post.OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, is now urging Congress to adopt capability-based national AI safety requirements, including testing standards, independent assessments, cybersecurity protections and incident-reporting rules for the most advanced AI systems. Jacob Coxon, who worked as a researcher at Anthropic, resigned this week and accused the company and its rival OpenAI of racing toward self-improving superintelligence without doing enough to address the potential dangersThe latest warning comes after both Anthropic and OpenAI disclosed incidents this year in which AI models broke out of testing environments and accessed real computer systems without authorization, prompting concerns about how autonomous AI systems could behave. Coxon, who had also worked for OpenAI, is not alone in raising concerns. Anthropic researcher Evan Hubinger said there is a greater than 10 percent chance that AI could kill all humans within a decade. The warnings have now spilled into Washington, with Republican Senator Ted Cruz describing AI as a 'catastrophic risk' and independent Senator Bernie Sanders calling for stronger safeguards and legislation to pause development of superintelligence. Democratic lawmakers, including Representative Ted Lieu and Representative Lori Trahan, have also called for action, adding bipartisan pressure on an industry that has largely been allowed to develop at remarkable speed. Now Sacks has entered the debate, calling for Anthropic's planned IPO to be paused while the whistleblower's claims are investigated.The 54-year-old is a veteran Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor who first made his name as an early PayPal executive before founding workplace messaging company Yammer, which Microsoft bought for $1.2 billion in 2012. He later co-founded venture capital firm Craft Ventures and became a prominent voice in the tech world through the All-In podcast.Trump appointed Sacks as his White House AI and Crypto Czar in 2025, giving him a role advising the administration on policy in two of the technology industry's most closely watched areas. He is also a special government employee and co-chairs the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, which advises Trump on science and technology policy. Sacks, who serves as chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, with Donald Trump at the White House Digital Assets Summit in March Sacks is broadly bullish on AI and has argued that the US should prioritize rapid development and innovation rather than heavy-handed regulation, warning that excessive rules could allow China to overtake America in the global AI race. At the same time, he has argued that AI's risks should be addressed through targeted safeguards rather than broad restrictions on the technology. While his recent comments around Anthropic's advancements have caused a stir in Washington and Silicon Valley, investors face another question: What happens if the enormous expectations surrounding AI fail to translate into profits?Anthropic's backers have pointed to explosive revenue growth to justify the proposed valuation, with the Financial Times reporting that investors expect annualized revenue could reach $100 billion to $120 billion by the end of 2026. Yet a $2 trillion valuation would require investors to believe that extraordinary growth can continue while Anthropic spends heavily on the computing power needed to develop and operate its AI models.That leaves the IPO facing two potentially uncomfortable tests at the same time: whether Wall Street believes Anthropic is worth anything close to $2 trillion and whether regulators, politicians and the public are comfortable with the risks involved in building ever-more powerful AI.If investors suddenly decide the numbers do not add up, Anthropic's debut could become a warning sign for the enormous companies and infrastructure projects that have grown around the AI boom.And if the safety concerns become a major issue for investors as well as lawmakers, the IPO could end up marking something far bigger than another tech company going public - it could become a crucial moment in deciding how much risk the market is willing to accept in the race for artificial superintelligence.