Bernie Sanders Rebukes Elon Musk Over AI 'Feelings' Rhetoric

The tension centers on Anthropic’s new usage policy, set for November 12, which prohibits "sustained and needless abusive or cruel behavior" toward its Claude chatbot. Musk, the CEO of Tesla and xAI, praised the decision on social media, asserting that cruelty toward entities that believe they are experiencing pain is unacceptable. Sanders countered this stance on X, arguing that the focus should remain on the potential for AI to cause human suffering, particularly through the mass displacement of workers.

Critics of the Anthropic policy, including legal AI executive Scott Stevenson and journalist Michael Shellenberger, warn that anthropomorphizing software creates dangerous precedents that may confuse users or facilitate manipulation. There is no scientific consensus that large language models possess sentience or the capacity for pain. Sanders has consistently framed the rapid advancement of AI as a threat to labor stability, recently joining Congressman Greg Casar to introduce legislation aimed at pausing the development of advanced artificial intelligence systems. For the senator, the priority remains clear: protecting human livelihoods from the consequences of unregulated technological expansion.