Congress, Zuckerberg Address AI Dangers; EU Proposes Canada Membership

SPEAKER_1 (0:02)

Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio, news.

Nathan Hager (0:10)

Good morning, I'm Nathan Hager.

Karen Moskow (0:11)

And I'm Karen Moskow. Here are the stories we're following today.

Nathan Hager (0:15)

Karen, we begin in Washington where the debate over artificial intelligence safety is heating up. Sources tell Bloomberg Anthropic's top executive in DC, Tom Brown, met virtually yesterday with commerce secretary Howard Lutnick and Pentagon Chief Tech Officer, Emile Michael. Tensions between Anthropic and the Trump administration were revived over CEO Dario Amodei's 3,800-word essay calling for government guardrails for AI.

President Trump is dismissing fears as a hoax. And House Speaker Mike Johnson says he agrees.

Mike Johnson (0:46)

We've all seen this movie before, okay?

Bernie Sanders (0:48)

We're 49 days out from an election.

Mike Johnson (0:51)

A catastrophe is created.

Bernie Sanders (0:53)

The media gets spun up, social media gets spun up.

Karen Moskow (0:55)

Everybody says we're all going to be, they literally said we're all going to be dead in 10 years.

Nathan Hager (0:59)

House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke on Capitol Hill, but the issue has brought together some unexpected political bedfellows. Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders joined former Trump adviser Steve Bannon at a pro-human rally in Washington.

Bernie Sanders (1:11)

If AI surpasses human intelligence, as many scientists believe could happen, this technology will escape human control with potentially catastrophic consequences.

Nathan Hager (1:27)

Independent Senator Bernie Sanders, the Pentagon's Emile Michael has publicly rejected claims AI will kill all humans, and sources tell Bloomberg that Secretary Ludnick is eager to push back at the negative messaging ahead of the midterms.

Karen Moskow (1:40)

Nathan, several tech leaders are weighing in on the safety and future of AI, and Bloomberg's John Tucker joins us with that part of the story. John, good morning.

Mike Johnson (1:48)

Good morning, Karen. We're hearing from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He says artificial intelligence labs should rely on independent evaluators to ensure that models are safe. In videos, Jensen Wong issued his opinion.

He dismissed the need for new AI security regulations, arguing that market forces will help companies safely innovate. Now, to underscore some of the urgency of this debate, OpenAI says it is now working with its chief competitors, Anthropic and Google DeepMind, to address AI safety issues. The global policy chief for OpenAI says the company's engagement with Anthropic and Google has been underway for several weeks. And OpenAI says it will support bipartisan proposals aimed at addressing potential catastrophic risks. I'm John Tucker, Bloomberg Radio.

Nathan Hager (2:38)

John, thanks. And as the AI controversy heats up, OpenAI is holding early talks with investors about a fresh funding ground that would value the ChatGPT maker at more than $1.2 trillion.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently told Fortune the company's long anticipated initial public offering wouldn't happen this year. Sources say the additional funding provides flexibility to push back the IPO until 2027

Karen Moskow (3:04)

Let's turn to the economy. Now, Nathan, in what may be the most highly anticipated Fed decision in years, from Main Street to Wall Street to the White House, the potential will be on new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh. And we get a preview with Bloomberg Economics correspondent Michael McKee.

Michael McKee (3:18)

Investors have priced in a quarter percentage point rate increase, the first since 2023

What really matters, however, is what the Fed will do next. Don't expect much of a signal from Chair Kevin Warsh, who has made it clear he doesn't like guiding the markets. But there will be clues. Policymakers will offer their latest forecasts on growth and inflation. If the outlook for either strengthens, it underpins a case for further rate increases. And there's the dot plot. Will it show a majority anticipate another move this year or in 2027?

The current median dot for 2027 anticipates essentially no move. Finally, members will also update their view of the longer-term neutral rate. It's risen in 2026 Another move higher would signal Fed officials don't think rates are restrictive enough to bring down inflation. Michael McKee, Bloomberg Radio.

Karen Moskow (4:08)

Michael, thank you. Stay with Bloomberg for complete coverage of the Fed with a special edition of Bloomberg Surveillance. It starts at 1:30 p.m. Wall Street time on Bloomberg Radio and television and on the Bloomberg Podcast YouTube page.

Nathan Hager (4:21)

Karen, we have a developing story out of Europe this morning. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is proposing that Canada become the first associate member of the European Union. Let's go to London and get the latest with Bloomberg's Ewan Potts.

Ewan Potts (4:35)

Nathan and Karen Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says the European Union needs to urgently re-imagine its partnerships and build global coalitions. She ended her annual State of the Union Address with a surprise announcement.