A political movement will save us from extinction

Epistemic status: I have spent the better part of 3.5 months full-time thinking about AI safety politics. I used to work at Constellation, and have followed rationalism for about a decade. Before working in AI safety, I was deeply involved in the animal rights movement, which may inform my views.This post includes claims about AI politics. I'm very interested in folks agreement/disagreement. For example, if you disagree, which statement do you disagree with, and why? I invite you to steel-man, if you feel so inclined.These claims form the basis for the organization that I've founded, Sapiens First.We are in a crisis. Super-intelligence is extremely near. Mythos surprised us all. Benchmarks are having trouble keeping up.Our politics is not ready. Trump has wavered on AI safety policy, and so have Democrats like Gavin Newsom. Even if they were 100% in agreement, would we still be able to handle it? Think of how the US Government handled COVID-19.Change in politics comes from people. It was a conservative president that passed the Civil Rights Act. Why? Because there was a movement.The populist movement is happening regardless. The question is – are we able to use it to build a better future? In this, mainstream AI reform advocates and grassroots activists must work together.Ideological discomfort is essential for a broad coalition. Alexei Navalny worked with white supremacists to fight Putin.Democratize AI. AI by the people, for the people. That is something anyone — Democrat or Republican — can get behind.Discuss