U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed AI safety concerns as a hoax, rejecting calls for stronger safeguards around the rapidly developing technology.

In a series of social media posts, Mr Trump criticised demands for increased regulation. He said the only “guardrails” AI needed were a “strong and smart” president.

His comments followed a call by Jack Clark, co-founder of AI company Anthropic, for lawmakers to consider making a third-party-verified “kill switch” mandatory for the industry.

Mr Clark said AI laboratories already have different mechanisms to shut down their systems if they become too dangerous, but lawmakers might need to make such measures compulsory.

The debate has intensified following warnings from technology executives and staffers about potential risks posed by AI to humanity.

The concerns have also contributed to a sell-off in technology stocks as investors considered the possible impact of slower AI development.

Meanwhile, UK Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds cautioned against complacency over AI, saying there were risks but also tremendous upsides in areas such as public services, healthcare and the economy.

Microsoft AI has also joined growing calls for stronger safeguards, recently discussing limits on the models it is developing under its “humanist AI” approach.

(NAN)