alt Hacker NewsAlex Tabarrok's piece on the theory of regulatory capture (https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2026/09/wh...) is a cautionary note against assuming this is the strategy.
Alex Tabarrok's piece on the theory of regulatory capture (https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2026/09/wh...) is a cautionary note against assuming this is the strategy.
I think a sincere belief in AI's danger is compatible with regulatory capture. They think AI is dangerous. Ergo, it should not be developed openly and widely, the Chinese way, but rather more like nuclear weapons, under close guard.
I think the idea has some merit, but it only buys time, as people will soon be able to train dangerously powerful AIs in secret. I think the government needs to force the labs to solve alignment before developing more powerful models. Then the question of how to counter a poorly-aligned, rogue model arises; it's guaranteed somebody's going to let one loose.