OpenAI Whistleblower FINALLY Speaks: “AI Has A 70% Chance Of Going Horribly Wrong!“

The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

• Podcast Home
• Download Episode

Monday, 13 July 2026 - 2 hours 1 minute

Ex-OpenAI researcher Daniel Kokotajlo walked away from $2 million rather than stay silent, and now reveals why he believes there's a 70% chance AI leads to human extinction, why superintelligence could arrive before the end of the decade, and the one plan he thinks could still save us all!

Daniel Kokotajlo is a former OpenAI researcher and one of the world's leading AI forecasters. He is the founder of the AI Futures Project and the lead author of 'AI 2027', the widely-read scenario mapping the trajectory of artificial intelligence. His follow-up, 'AI 2040: Plan A', sets out how the world could still navigate superintelligence safely.

He explains:
■ What he saw inside OpenAI that made him walk away

■ Why the people building AI privately believe it's coming even sooner than the public is being told
■ What happens if AI becomes powerful enough that humans can no longer control it, and why he puts the odds of catastrophe as high as 70%
■ Why almost every job could be automated, and what that means for the next generation
■ The plan he believes could still lead to abundance and a future worth living in

Chapters

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:02:14 Why This AI Mission Could Affect Everyone
• 00:04:01 Why the Average Person Should Care About AI
• 00:08:09 Are AI Experts Overreacting or Sounding the Alarm?
• 00:09:46 Why He Joined OpenAI—and What He Saw Inside
• 00:13:04 Why He Left OpenAI
• 00:15:33 What It Was Like Inside OpenAI During ChatGPT's Launch
• 00:16:56 The Million NDA Controversy Explained
• 00:19:10 Is Full AI Automation Coming Faster Than We Think?
• 00:23:59 The AI 2027 Forecast That Changed the Conversation
• 00:26:13 AGI vs. Superintelligence: The Difference That Matters
• 00:26:57 How Robots Could Soon Become Part of Everyday Life
• 00:30:03 Why AI Works More Like the Human Brain Than You Think
• 00:35:54 Can AI Ever Be Truly Creative?
• 00:40:55 What Are the Real Odds of Human Extinction From AI?
• 00:47:38 What AI Will Do to Jobs
• 00:54:25 The Skills That Will Still Matter in an AI World
• 01:00:01 AI 2040: What the Future Could Look Like
• 01:04:16 The Different Futures AI Could Create
• 01:09:13 Will AI Become Earth's Apex Species?
• 01:12:58 How AI CEOs Really Make Decisions
• 01:15:17 Will AI Decide the 2028 Election?
• 01:18:38 Is There a Safe Path to Accelerating AI?
• 01:21:51 By 2031, AI Could Do 20% of Cognitive Work
• 01:24:55 Should Everyone Receive AI Dividends?
• 01:32:21 What It Will Feel Like to Live Through the AI Revolution
• 01:33:51 How People Find Purpose After AI Replaces Jobs
• 01:45:52 Would He Shut Down AI Forever If He Could?
• 01:49:36 What Can We Actually Do About AI?
• 01:57:05 Is It Already Too Late to Change Course?

Follow Daniel:
X - https://link.thediaryofaceo.com/47vmwiA
Substack - https://link.thediaryofaceo.com/5alnhzB 
You can read 'AI 2027' here: https://link.thediaryofaceo.com/7W2L8di and its follow-up 'AI 2040: Plan A' here: https://link.thediaryofaceo.com/EFjbRzP 

Daniel's AI predictions:
https://ai-2027.com/
https://ai-2040.com/

AI risk reading list:
https://blog.redwoodresearch.org/p/ai-futurism-reading-list

The Diary Of A CEO:
■ Join DOAC circle here - https://doaccircle.com/
■ Buy The Diary Of A CEO book here - https://smarturl.it/DOACbook
■ The 1% Diary is back - limited time only: https://bit.ly/3YFbJbt
■ The Diary Of A CEO Conversation Cards: https://linkly.link/2hm7r
■ Get email updates - https://bit.ly/diary-of-a-ceo-yt
■ Follow Steven - https://g2ul0.app.link/gnGqL4IsKKb

Sponsors:
Ketone - https://ketone.com/STEVEN for 30% off your subscription order
Stan - Visit https://coach.stan.store/?ref=stevenbartlett&utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode11
HeyGen - https://heygen.com/doac

Subscribe to this podcast

• Apple Podcasts
• Apple Podcasts
• RSS Feed