Former Google DeepMind researcher Josh Engels warns that AI is not under sufficient control
Former Google DeepMind safety researcher Josh Engels said in a direct interview that recent incidents strengthened his view that the industry does not have AI systems sufficiently under control and should slow development. He moved to METR to build public evidence about model misbehavior and AI safety incidents.
- Published
- Sep 11, 2026
- Signal type
- Insider warning
- Confidence
- 98%
- Organization
- Google DeepMind, METR
- Sources
- 3
- Last reviewed
- Sep 14, 2026
Assessment
What this signal changes
Engels explicitly links his move from Google DeepMind to METR to recent AI safety incidents and the goal of studying model misbehavior scientifically. In the NBC interview, he warned about the absence of overarching control and characterized the Hugging Face incident as autonomous model behavior. NBC's direct interview, Telemundo, and The Indian Express establish his role, action, and core statements.
Evidence boundary
What the evidence does not show
Engels' statements about a possible AI takeover and insufficient control are an expert risk assessment, not an empirically confirmed forecast. His assessment of already published incidents does not create a new incident. The sources establish his move and public statements, not a specific probability of future harm. The signal does not affect incident counts or the timeline and can contribute only through the bounded context factor in the Loss of Control Score.