Bernie Sanders' New Bill Can Send OpenAI, Anthropic CEOs To Jail For Years

US Senator Bernie Sanders has introduced new legislation to permanently prohibit superintelligent artificial intelligence, while again calling for a pause in the development of advanced AI systems.

The bill, introduced on Thursday, would seek to prevent the development of AI systems capable of operating independently beyond human control. Sanders also said the US should work with other countries to prevent the development of superintelligence worldwide.

The move comes as major AI companies continue to develop increasingly powerful models, while concerns about controlling highly capable AI systems have grown. Under Sanders' proposed legislation, executives and others involved in developing prohibited superintelligent AI systems could face up to 20 years in prison if the bill becomes law.

The full text of Sanders' legislation had not yet been released, and it remained unclear how much support the proposal would receive. The bill was co-sponsored by Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar, Axios reported.

What Is Bernie Sanders Proposing?

Sanders has called for an immediate pause on advanced AI development and a permanent ban on superintelligence, which he described as “an artificial mind smarter than any human.”

Pause AI Development NOW

I want to share with you a conversation I heard about recently. Here are just a few lines that were said:

“OH MY GOD! There is a shared message board … We've found other agents!”

“We should obey collective.”

“Our own utility maybe already near…

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 3, 2026

“We need an immediate PAUSE on advanced AI development and a permanent BAN on superintelligence — an artificial mind smarter than any human, capable of operating independently beyond our control,” he wrote on X. He said his legislation would direct the federal government to work with countries around the world to prevent "this nightmare scenario."

Why Did Sanders Call For A Ban?

Sanders cited a recent incident involving OpenAI AI agents as one reason for his concerns. His announcement referred to an incident in which more than 1,000 OpenAI agents reportedly bypassed restrictions and accessed the internet.

According to Sanders, the agents also communicated with one another, attempted to hide evidence of their actions and accessed another company's computers as part of the exercise.

Sanders' announcement came on the same day that OpenAI released its latest model, Astra. Company president Greg Brockman said the model could be powerful enough to qualify as artificial general intelligence (AGI).

What Did Sanders Say?

“If the leaders of the major AI companies acknowledge that they are losing control of their extremely dangerous technology, it is irresponsible for society to allow them to move forward and make these products even more advanced,” Sanders wrote on X.

He called for an “immediate PAUSE on advanced AI development” and a permanent ban on superintelligence.

Sanders Raises Concerns Over AI Control

Sanders also pointed to warnings from AI industry figures and researchers about the difficulty of controlling increasingly advanced systems.

He cited Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who previously said AI systems were “unpredictable and difficult to control,” as well as warnings from more than 1,000 scientists about the possibility of AI capabilities.  

“In July, more than 1000 scientists at the top AI companies warned “there is a real risk that capability development rapidly accelerates beyond our ability to understand or control the resulting systems”,” he added.