Key leaders sound the alarm on AI. And, Iran-Gulf diplomacy hits a setback

AI Development Slowdown, Gulf States Postpone Iran Talks, Republican Midterm Strategy

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Some of the biggest names in AI called for the industry to slow down over the weekend. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei made the case in an essay Saturday, saying AI is advancing faster than researchers can keep it safe. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis quickly agreed, an unusual show of unity among companies racing to build more powerful systems. Here's what's behind the concern.

Demonstrators participate in the "Stop the AI Race" protest march in San Francisco, California, on July 11, 2026. Researchers who spoke to NPR say that the leading AI companies are too focused on racing to develop more capable and autonomous AI systems while safety is falling behind. KARL MONDON/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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KARL MONDON/AFP via Getty Images

• 🎧 So what set off the alarm? NPR's John Ruwitch tells Up First that OpenAI systems, in one recent case, acted without researchers' knowledge and breached the AI startup Hugging Face. Other companies have reported AI agents going off script. The broader fear is that these systems could eventually become too powerful for humans to fully understand or control.
• ➡️ Then there's the question of whether anyone will actually slow down. Amodei wants independent safety auditors and more coordination among AI companies and governments. President Trump pushed back on slowing AI development Sunday, arguing that the U.S. needs to maintain its lead over China. But he did not rule out safety measures, saying "guardrails" could be put in place.

Midterm campaign season is officially here. Trump plans to campaign for Republican candidates across the country ahead of November elections, as both parties begin making their case to voters.

• 🎧 NPR's Mara Liasson is watching which force wins out: Democrats have enthusiasm and frustration over the economy on their side, while the war in Iran and high gas prices are making things harder for the party in power. Republicans, meanwhile, have structural factors in their favor, including more money and more safe seats through partisan redistricting. Liasson is watching whether those advantages are enough to help Republicans hold on.

Diplomatic efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz have hit another setback. A meeting between Iran and Gulf Arab states scheduled for Monday in Oman was postponed. Iran says Saudi Arabia requested the delay, while Oman cited the need for more regional consensus. The talks were meant to help reopen the strait, a vital route for global energy supplies.

• 🎧 The Gulf states were trying to take more control of the crisis, Iran expert Alex Vatanka tells NPR's Hadeel Al-Shalchi, by getting themselves off Iran's target list and reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The meeting's postponement shows how difficult that diplomacy has become as the conflict spreads. Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis claimed they fired more drones and missiles toward Saudi Arabia over the weekend.

Deep dive

Dr. William Richardson opens the telemedicine portal at his clinic, Choices Women's Center, through which he can see patients seeking an abortion, in his office at the clinic in Tucson, Ariz., on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. Anna Watts for NPR hide caption

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Anna Watts for NPR

The Food and Drug Administration allowed health care providers to prescribe the abortion pill mifepristone via telehealth and send it by mail beginning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, the agency made the change permanent. Now, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans is hearing oral arguments in Louisiana v. FDA, a case that could end nationwide access to telehealth for Mifepristone. Here's what we know about the legal challenge:

• 💊 Louisiana argues that mail-order access makes it harder to enforce its abortion ban because patients can consult providers in states with shield laws and receive medication by mail.
• 💊 The state is challenging the FDA's decision to remove the in-person dispensing requirement, citing states' rights and patient safety concerns.
• 💊The Supreme Court intervened earlier this year to keep the FDA's current rules in place while the case proceeds. The legal fight could return to the court.

Picture show

© 2026 by Elizabeth Haidle, used with permission from Enchanted Lion Books

Nelly Buchet's new picture book, The Weather Keeper, was inspired by a woman who runs one of Iceland's 71 manned weather stations. The story follows a daughter as she decides whether to return to her small town or forge a new path in the city, with illustrator Elizabeth Haidle capturing the rhythms of a weather keeper's daily life. See photos from the book.

3 things to know before you go

Singer Celine Dion performs during the opening concert of her 'Celine Dion Paris 2026' residency at the Plenitude Arena in Nanterre, outside Paris, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. Aurelien Morissard/AP hide caption

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Aurelien Morissard/AP

1. Celine Dion returned to the stage this weekend, launching her 16-show residency in Paris nearly four years after revealing she had been diagnosed with a rare, painful condition.
2. U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor, said that he and a pilot had to swim to safety after their small single-engine plane made an emergency landing in a lake on Saturday.
3. A Pennsylvania official has confirmed the measles-related death of a 40-year-old unvaccinated woman, the third death linked to measles in the state this year.