Hey neighbor,
Big week — the world's richest men are now publicly weighing in on AI and jobs, world leaders met to discuss AI access, and a fascinating vulnerability project made headlines. Let's get into it.
THIS WEEK IN AI
Jeff Bezos says AI will cause labor shortages, not job losses
Jeff Bezos told the VivaTech conference in Paris this week that he believes AI will cause labor shortages, not job cuts — a strikingly optimistic view that runs counter to what many people fear.
His argument: AI will create so much new economic activity — new industries, new products, new services — that there won't be enough workers to fill all the new jobs it creates. Think of how the internet didn't eliminate jobs but created millions of new ones that didn't exist before — web designers, social media managers, app developers, cybersecurity experts.
That said, a Reuters/Ipsos poll reported this month found that half of Americans said they worry AI could cost them or their household a job. The gap between what tech leaders believe and what everyday people fear is striking — and worth paying attention to.
The honest answer is that nobody knows for certain. But having two of the most powerful people in tech — Bezos this week, Sam Altman last week — both publicly saying AI won't destroy jobs is notable.
World leaders met to discuss who gets access to the most powerful AI
G7 leaders discussed a proposal to let certain "trusted partner" countries access top US artificial intelligence models. This comes after the US directed Anthropic to restrict foreign nationals from its strongest AI systems. AI access is getting treated more as critical infrastructure than just another cloud contract, as governments and companies shift their approach.
In plain English: the world's most powerful AI models are now being treated like nuclear technology or military secrets — something governments carefully control who can access. The US is deciding which countries can use its most advanced AI and which cannot.
What this means for you: AI is no longer just a tech story. It's a geopolitical story. The same tools you use to write emails and understand documents are being treated as national security assets by governments around the world.
Anthropic's secret AI project just found thousands of critical security vulnerabilities
Anthropic's Project Glasswing — using its unreleased Claude Mythos Preview model — found over 10,000 critical vulnerabilities in major software systems, including a 27-year-old bug in OpenBSD that had gone undetected for nearly three decades.
In plain English: Anthropic gave its most powerful unreleased AI to a small group of trusted organizations and asked it to find security holes in software that millions of people use. It found thousands — including one that had been hiding in plain sight for 27 years.
What this means for you: AI is being used to make the software on your phone and computer more secure. The same technology that helps you write emails is also hunting for bugs that hackers could exploit. That's a genuinely good use of AI.
PLAIN ENGLISH EXPLAINER
Why is the G7 suddenly treating AI like a national security issue?
The G7 is a group of seven of the world's largest democratic economies — the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan. They meet regularly to coordinate on big global issues.
This week AI joined nuclear weapons, trade policy, and military alliances as a topic at the G7 table. Why?
Because the most powerful AI models — the ones that can help design new drugs, crack security systems, write sophisticated code, or analyze intelligence — are now powerful enough that governments are worried about them falling into the wrong hands.
Think of it like this: a kitchen knife is a tool anyone can buy. A military-grade weapon is something governments control carefully. AI has crossed a threshold where the most powerful models are starting to feel more like the second category than the first.
This is new territory. The rules are still being written. But the fact that world leaders are discussing it seriously means AI's impact on society — and on your life — is only going to grow.
TOOL OF THE WEEK
Try this: Perplexity AI for understanding the news
Given all the complex geopolitical AI news this week, this is a great moment to try Perplexity — a free AI-powered search tool that explains things clearly and cites its sources.
Here are three things to try:
→ Ask it "explain the G7 AI access debate in simple terms" and see how it breaks it down
→ Ask it "what is Project Glasswing?" and compare its answer to what you just read here
→ Use it to research any news story you've been confused about this week — it's much better than wading through dozens of search results
Go to perplexity.ai — free, no account required to start.
NEIGHBOR'S THOUGHT
The gap between what tech leaders believe and what people fear
This week Jeff Bezos said AI will create labor shortages. Last week Sam Altman said he was wrong about job losses. And yet half of Americans in a poll said they're worried AI will cost their household a job.
That gap matters. Not because the tech leaders are right and the people are wrong — or vice versa. But because the people living with economic uncertainty every day have very different information and very different stakes than the billionaires building the technology.
Both things can be true: AI might create more jobs than it destroys over the long run AND cause real pain and disruption to real people in the short run. The long run doesn't pay this month's rent.
What I'd say to anyone worried about AI and their job: stay curious, stay informed, and keep learning what these tools can do. Not because the optimists are definitely right. But because the people who understand the technology will have more options than those who don't — whatever happens next.
UNTIL NEXT WEEK
That's your week in AI, neighbor-style. If you found the jobs discussion useful, this is a great issue to forward to someone who's been worried about AI and their career.
See you next Thursday. ☀️
— The AI Neighbor Team
theaineighbor.com