Trump Dismisses AI Safety Concerns as Microsoft Posts Record Bookings
President Trump downplayed concerns over AI safety on Monday, saying 'whoever wins, AI wins.' His comments came after a weekend essay by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urging the AI industry to slow its pace of research and establish common safety standards. Former Senator Joe Manchin responded by calling for an executive order to freeze AI-company IPOs until safeguards are in place.
Despite the calls for caution, Microsoft's quarterly results showed strong growth in its Azure business, which crossed $100 billion in annual revenue with a 43% increase. The company's commercial backlog surged 84% to $678 billion, contributing to the market's shrug at AI safety concerns.
The old economy also saw mixed results, with Progressive and Sherwin-Williams posting lower stock prices despite recent earnings reports.