Former political rivals Bill Shorten and Christopher Pyne have joined the extraordinary cross-ideological chorus as the AI panic speeds up.

Bill Shorten has warned humanity may have created “nukes with opinions”, joining former Liberal defence minister Christopher Pyne in calling for the frontier AI race to be brought under control.

For many warning about this very scenario years ago, the sudden rush of attention has come far too late.

The former Labor leader now agrees the increasingly dire warnings coming from inside the industry could no longer be brushed aside.

“I don’t think we’re doomed, but the more we hear from even the CEOs and chief officers of the frontier laboratories of AI, I cannot escape the conclusion that we may have built nukes with opinions,” Mr Shorten told ABC’s 7.30 on Wednesday night.

“This is a marvellous technology, but until we can regulate it, we need to slow down.”

Mr Shorten stressed that he was not talking about ordinary AI use in universities or data centres, but the advanced systems being developed at the frontier.

“Once you eliminate human oversight, there’s no guarantee that what we’re designing will actually make decisions in the best interests of humanity,” he said.

Mr Pyne agreed, arguing artificial intelligence may prove harder to contain than nuclear weapons.

“At least with nuclear weapons, they are regulated by the countries that have them,” he said.

“One of the problems with AI is that you don’t need any of those things. It’s ubiquitous, it is not regulated and no-one seems to be in the least bit interested in getting it under control.”

Their unlikely agreement mirrors an even stranger political union emerging in the US as the reality sets in.

Bill Shorten has warned humanity may have created ‘nukes with opinions’, joining former Liberal defence minister Christopher Pyne in calling for the frontier AI race to be brought under control.

Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump’s former strategist Steve Bannon appeared at the same “Pro-Human Assembly” in Washington this week, both demanding tighter controls over advanced AI.

Mr Sanders told CBS News the potential danger posed by artificial intelligence was “probably greater than nuclear weapons”.

“Like nuclear weapons, artificial superintelligence is a threat to humanity — and it must be treated as such,” he said in prepared remarks.

Mr Sanders is preparing legislation that would temporarily pause advanced AI development and permanently prohibit the creation of artificial superintelligence — machines smarter than humans and capable of operating beyond human control.

The proposition is pushing for prison sentences of up to 20 years for violations.

Mr Bannon, who could perhaps be best described as Sanders’ polar opposite, nevertheless agreed that the issue went beyond the usual partisan trenches.

“We have to rise above it,” he said. “This is a hinge in history.”

Steve Bannon, host of the War Room podcast and former adviser to US President Donald Trump, speaks during the The Pro-Human Assembly. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

US Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont, speaks during the The Pro-Human Assembly, convening the leadership of nearly every constituency of the pro-human movement in the wake of the rise of artificial intelligence. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

But another prominent figure believes there may be a more cynical explanation for the sudden chorus of concern.

Michael Burry, the investor who famously predicted the global financial crisis, accused OpenAI, Anthropic and other industry giants of promoting a conveniently terrifying story as growth slows and enormous public listings loom.

“Let’s all take a moment to understand how self-serving it is for OpenAI, Anthropic and other execs of big hyperscalers to talk of slowing things down,” Burry wrote on X.

“IPOs need hype & puffery; ‘we are so awesome it could become dangerous’ is hype & puffery.”

Burry argued that demands for regulation could also help established companies lock out smaller challengers while casting themselves as the only organisations capable of safely handling the technology.

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Bill Shorten says humanity should be careful not to build ‘nukes with opinions’ as AI frenzy kicks up