Free question-and-answer site explaining AI risk arguments in plain language, founded by Rob Miles and maintained by volunteers. Answers are organised as linked questions from beginner to advanced, covering how AI is advancing, why systems may pursue goals, alignment research and AI governance. Includes Stampy, a chatbot that answers AI safety questions with sources. Open source on GitHub; run as a project of Ashgro Inc, a US 501(c)(3) charity.
Why I recommend it: The clearest free place to find out what people mean when they talk about AI risk, written so you can follow it without a technical background. Be clear about what it is: this is advocacy, not a neutral survey of the debate. The homepage opens with 'it could lead to human extinction', and the whole site is built by people who already hold that view, so you will get their strongest arguments rather than the strongest objections to them. Their own chatbot warns it can be inaccurate — check its sources before repeating anything. Read it to understand the case, then read the critics of it, and pair it with the AI Basics page here for the numbers.
Personal site of the philosopher behind Superintelligence and the simulation argument, with free full-text papers on existential risk, human enhancement, anthropics and the future of AI. Many of the ideas now standard in AI risk debates started here; his work is also widely criticised, so read it alongside its critics.
From the site: Oxford philosopher (videos, papers, interviews, bio, etc.)
Why I recommend it: Read the primary source rather than summaries of it — then read the critics, several of whom are already in the hub.
Newsletter and blog covering transformative AI risk, AI alignment, forecasting, longtermism and how to navigate the century ahead. By Holden Karnofsky; posts are freely readable with an optional audio version.
From the site: For audio version, search for "Cold Takes Audio" in your podcast app
SSRN working paper by Carla Zoe Cremer (Oxford) and Luke Kemp (Cambridge) examining how existential risk studies can be made more rigorous, pluralistic and democratic. Argues for separating extinction ethics from risk analysis and drawing on broader risk-assessment literature.
Émile P. Torres's weekly newsletter examining the ideologies driving Silicon Valley — effective altruism, longtermism, TESCREAL, and the race to build artificial superintelligence — from a critical, insider-turned-skeptic perspective.
From the site: Stop doomscrolling and just read this! Click to read Realtime Techpocalypse Newsletter, by Émile P. Torres, a Substack publication with thousands of subscribers.
A long-form critical essay by Émile P. Torres arguing that the effective altruism movement has become a cult-like ideology with its own doctrines, charismatic leaders, jargon and social controls — and that this matters for how AI is being developed.
From the site: Understanding the "Scientology of Silicon Valley." (7,700 words)
The academic and popular-writing home page of philosopher Émile P. Torres, covering existential risk, the history of human-extinction thought, and critical work on TESCREAL ideologies in Silicon Valley.
Cambridge research centre studying risks that could threaten humanity's long-term future, with open papers, seminars and policy submissions.
From the site: We study existential and global catastrophic risks & foster a worldwide community of academics, technologists and policy-makers working to mitigate these risks.
Why I recommend it: Academic and careful. Their reading lists and seminar recordings are the fastest way into the field's actual literature.
#academic#ai ethics#ai-safety
CSER - Centre for the Study of Existential RiskAdded Sep 17, 20260 opens
