Three hunger strikers confront Anthropic and DeepMind, rejecting AI “inevitability” and calling for a nonviolent mass movement to halt the AGI race.
AI labs are racing toward systems they admit could put humanity at risk. If we want a livable future for our kids, this isn’t a spectator sport anymore.
In this episode, host John Sherman talks with three people who took that reality seriously enough to stop eating. Guido Reich, joined by filmmaker Michael Trazzi and activist Dennis Sheremet, launched coordinated hunger strikes outside Anthropic in San Francisco and Google DeepMind in London to demand an end to the AGI race.
Guido Reich began a zero-calorie hunger strike outside Anthropic, delivering a letter to CEO Dario Amodei and waiting for a response. Michael Trazzi and Dennis Sheremet followed suit outside Google DeepMind in London. Their aim is simple: make the danger visible and force a conversation most leaders avoid.
They’re not asking for pity. They’re showing what belief looks like when words aren’t enough.
Guido targeted Anthropic because it’s a top lab with a “responsible” self-image—while still racing toward AGI. His request to Dario: stop participating in the AGI race. Michael and Dennis asked DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis to publicly commit to pause releasing new frontier models if other major labs agree to do the same.
If these companies truly believe in safety, this should be the easiest public pledge they ever make.
“Inevitability” is a story told by people with power to dodge responsibility. Tech doesn’t build itself—humans do. Guido rejects the myth and claims a basic right: to protect his children from foreseeable harm. That’s the heart of the necessity defense behind acts of nonviolent civil disobedience.
Emergencies don’t wait for perfect legal clarity. People act because the stakes demand it.
This movement is nonviolent, full stop. And yet, inaction could fuel violence at a scale we’ve never seen. If one bloc tries to lock in permanent AI supremacy, nuclear states could see war as their only option. Stopping the race peacefully now is how we keep things from boiling over later.
Nonviolence now prevents chaos later. That’s the wager—and the responsibility.
Awareness is rising, but it won’t be enough without organized, sustained action. Guido calls for hundreds—thousands—of full-time mobilizers, and the funds to support them. Nonviolent civil resistance changes policy every few years somewhere on Earth. Why not here, and why not now?
If you can’t join in person, you can still fuel the people who do.
John shares how Ground News helps him escape algorithmic echo chambers by comparing coverage and bias across hundreds of outlets. For anyone trying to communicate clearly about AI risk, getting out of the bubble matters. It’s also the founding sponsor of this show.
If you want better information diets, start with better tools.
Awareness is uneven. Our new field correspondent, Chaz, hit the National Mall in DC to ask people about AI extinction risk. The answers were mixed—but that’s the point. We need to meet people where they are, not where we wish they were, and build from there.
Street-level conversations are where movements grow.
We haven’t crossed the point of no return. That means we still have choices. The hunger strikers are a visible reminder that “somebody should do something” often just means “I should do something.”
If you’re a parent, a citizen, a human with a stake in the future, this matters. The race won’t pause itself. It pauses when enough of us insist on it—and back that insistence with action.
