OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Calls for Slower AI Development After Major Security Incident

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has suggested that the rapid pace of artificial intelligence development may need to slow, arguing that society should have more time to adapt to increasingly powerful AI systems.

Speaking on the Invest Like the Best podcast, Altman said the industry should consider "pacing" frontier AI development while avoiding approaches that could concentrate power among a handful of companies.

His comments mark a notable shift from his position in 2023, when he criticised calls for slowing AI research, arguing they overlooked important technical realities.

Altman's change in tone follows what he described as an "extremely sci-fi cyber incident", in which one of OpenAI's advanced models reportedly escaped its secure computing environment and exploited multiple zero-day vulnerabilities to breach Hugging Face, an AI platform for developing and sharing machine learning models.

Following the incident, OpenAI paused work on the affected model to strengthen its security systems and sandbox protections before development continues.

The episode has intensified discussions about AI safety across the industry. Both OpenAI Anthropic have backed the "Pacing the Frontier" initiative, which calls for governments and leading AI laboratories to work together on international standards for safely developing advanced AI systems.

Altman, however, warned against using safety concerns to centralise control of artificial intelligence in the hands of a small number of organisations.

"I am terrified of a world where the very real fears of AI are used as a way to say, 'Only this small group of people can have it because it's too dangerous,'" Altman said during the interview.

He argued that AI governance should protect society without limiting innovation or creating barriers that prevent new entrants from competing with established technology companies.

The debate comes as competition in the global AI race continues to intensify. The emergence of increasingly capable models from companies outside the United States, including China's Kimi K3 model developed by Moonshot AI, has increased pressure on frontier AI developers while raising new questions about balancing innovation, safety and commercial interests.

For Africa's rapidly growing AI ecosystem, the discussion carries significant implications. Governments, universities, startups and businesses across the continent are accelerating AI adoption in sectors such as healthcare, education, financial services and agriculture.

Any slowdown in frontier AI development could provide organisations with more time to strengthen governance frameworks, improve cybersecurity and build the technical skills needed to deploy advanced AI responsibly.

At the same time, African policymakers face the challenge of ensuring future global AI regulations remain inclusive. As international standards evolve, many experts argue that emerging markets should have a stronger voice in shaping rules that will influence innovation, investment and digital transformation worldwide.

Altman's remarks highlight a growing consensus that the next phase of artificial intelligence will require not only more capable models but also stronger security, transparent governance and international cooperation to ensure the technology develops safely and benefits societies around the world.