Why a new report on Anthropic automating AI development is alarming researchers

AI is dramatically speeding up Anthropic’s research, even as the company calls for slowing down AI development. Anthropic is using AI to build more powerful AI. And it appears to be working remarkably well, with the company’s models improving roughly twice as quickly as a year ago, with little indication of slowing down.

That’s according to a new report published Thursday by the AI safety research organization METR, following an 11-week investigation inside the company, as part of a report evaluating its AI research and development. The probe is separate from a program offering safety researchers “employee-like” access to systems in the wake of high-profile hacking incidents over the summer.

The findings offer some of the clearest evidence yet of AI accelerating its own development, raising questions about how quickly the technology could advance toward a future in which AI systems can improve themselves with little or no human involvement. They also come at a pivotal time for Anthropic, which is preparing to…