An ex-OpenAI researcher's influential nonprofit is now smack in the middle of AI's doom debate

Business Insider | 12-09-2026 12:38am |

METR, a nonprofit started by an ex-OpenAI researcher, has become a prominent evaluator of AI models, working with OpenAI, Anthropic, and governments. Anthropic researcher Joe Benton announced he left Anthropic to join METR, citing concerns about extinction-level risks from AI. METR's president, Chris Painter, and CEO, Beth Barnes, lead the organization. Barnes had previously noted difficulties in hiring researchers to monitor AI risks, but that is beginning to change.

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