World may not have time to prepare for escalating AI risks

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than many policymakers, regulators and even technology leaders ever anticipated. A leading AI safety researcher has warned that the world may not have enough time to put effective safeguards in place before increasingly powerful systems are deployed at scale. That warning underscores a growing concern: the current pace of AI development could outstrip our ability to manage its risks, with consequences for everything from democratic stability to economic security and national defence.

A race between AI capability and AI safety

The core message from experts is stark: AI capability is accelerating faster than AI governance. Over the last few years, large language models and generative AI tools have moved from research labs into mainstream products, reshaping business processes, media, and online information flows almost overnight. This rapid adoption has been driven by intense competition between major technology companies and a surge in investment, closely linked to broader themes like AI market growth and long-term economic outlook.

However, the safety research needed to understand and control the most advanced systems typically lags behind. Building and testing powerful AI models can take months; designing robust legal, technical and institutional safeguards can take years. The concern expressed by leading researchers is that we may be entering a period where deployment timelines are measured in quarters, while regulation moves on a scale of decades.

Escalating risks from more powerful AI systems

Today’s generative AI systems are already capable of:

• Producing convincing misinformation and synthetic media at scale
• Automating parts of cyberattacks, from phishing emails to basic exploit discovery
• Generating code and content that can lower barriers to harmful biological, chemical or digital experiments
• Shaping public opinion through micro-targeted content and highly personalized interactions

As models become more capable, researchers warn of escalating risks that are difficult to predict and even harder to reverse once systems are widely deployed. These include:

• Loss of control over complex AI-driven systems in finance, infrastructure, or defence
• Concentration of power in a small number of corporations or states that control frontier models
• Systemic economic disruption as automation reshapes labour markets faster than institutions can adapt
• Weaponisation of AI in information warfare, cyber operations and autonomous systems

Many of these risks are not purely hypothetical. Governments and regulators are already grappling with disinformation, algorithmic bias, and the impact of automation on jobs and inflation trends. What worries safety researchers is that the next generation of AI systems could magnify these problems significantly, while introducing entirely new failure modes.

Why traditional regulation may be too slow

Historically, society has responded to transformative technologies—such as nuclear power, aviation, or pharmaceuticals—through a combination of international agreements, domestic regulation and technical standards. Those frameworks took time to develop, often emerging only after major accidents, crises or geopolitical shocks.

With AI, experts argue that waiting for a disaster could be catastrophic. The global AI ecosystem is deeply interconnected: models trained in one country can be deployed worldwide in days, and tools that lower the barrier to cybercrime or biothreats could spread quickly. As a result, the traditional “wait-and-see” approach to regulation is increasingly seen as inadequate.

Leading researchers emphasise that proactive governance is essential. That includes:

• Rigorous testing and evaluation of high-risk AI systems before deployment
• Mandatory risk assessments for frontier models with potential national security or systemic economic impact
• Transparent reporting on model capabilities, limitations and training data practices
• International cooperation on safety standards and responsible development

The political and economic challenge

Implementing strong AI safety measures faces real political and economic obstacles. Governments are under pressure to capture the benefits of AI for productivity, competitiveness and long-term AI market growth. Businesses, especially in highly competitive sectors, are incentivised to release new features quickly to gain market share and investor confidence.

This creates a classic tension between short-term economic gains and long-term systemic risk. Some policymakers worry that heavy-handed regulation could stifle innovation or push development to less regulated jurisdictions. Safety researchers counter that a failure to act could lead to scenarios that are far more damaging to the global economy and stability than any temporary slowdown in product launches.

Preparing for a future we may not fully understand

The warning that “the world may not have time to prepare” is ultimately a call to treat AI as a strategic risk, not just an exciting new technology. That means:

• Investing significantly more in AI safety research and interpretability, not only in capabilities
• Building institutional capacity in governments to understand and oversee frontier AI systems
• Engaging civil society, academia, and the private sector in transparent, ongoing dialogue
• Aligning AI policy with broader questions about democracy, security, and the global economic outlook

Unlike many previous technological shifts, advanced AI may not offer the luxury of slow adaptation. Once certain systems are widely deployed or integrated into critical infrastructure, reversing course could be extraordinarily difficult. The researcher’s warning is therefore not just about technical safety; it is about whether our political, economic and ethical frameworks can keep pace with a technology that is evolving at unprecedented speed.

As governments debate regulation and companies race to release more powerful models, the central question is no longer whether AI will transform society—it already is—but whether we can develop and enforce guardrails quickly enough to ensure that transformation remains aligned with human values and global stability.

Reference Sources

World may not have time to prepare for AI safety risks, says leading researcher – The Guardian