Pastime | Episode
Pastime

The White House’s Secret A.I. Rules + The State of Model Alignment With METR’s Chris Painter + The Final Hot Mess Express

Hard Fork | Aug 07 2026 | 01:05:29

This week, the White House announced a new framework for regulating A.I. models, but it isn’t letting the public read it. We break down what we know about the rules and what the implications are for the industry and A.I. safety as a whole. 

Then, yet another report details new incidents in which A.I. agents have gone rogue. Chris Painter, the president of METR, an independent A.I. evaluation organization, joins to discuss how we get these models under control. 

And finally, we're hopping on the Hot Mess Express for the very last time. We’ll rate the craziest tech headlines from the week, including Google’s announcement that Demis Hassabis is stepping into a new role. 

 

Guests:

 

Additional Reading:

 

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