Week 4 — Threat Models
How could alignment failures lead to large-scale harm? We’ll examine takeover arguments, compare plans for reducing misalignment risk, and discuss a narrative scenario. Supplementary resources explore misuse, gradual disempowerment, and competing views of AI risk.
Open the Week 4 curriculum in Google Docs ↗
Core resources
Recommended resources
- AI 2027 (AI Futures Project, 2025) — scenario ↗
- AI 2040 — alternative scenarios for Plans A–D ↗
- Gradual Disempowerment: Systemic Existential Risks from Incremental AI Development (Kulveit et al., 2025) ↗
- AI-enabled coups: How a small group could use AI to seize power (Forethought, 2025) ↗
- AI as Normal Technology (Arvind Narayanan & Sayash Kapoor, 2025) — critical perspective ↗