{"id":225064,"date":"2026-06-03T06:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T10:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/03\/niall-ferguson-the-most-dangerous-arms-race-in-history-plus\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T06:35:39","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T10:35:39","slug":"niall-ferguson-the-most-dangerous-arms-race-in-history-plus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/03\/niall-ferguson-the-most-dangerous-arms-race-in-history-plus\/","title":{"rendered":"Niall Ferguson: The Most Dangerous Arms Race in History. Plus.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Niall Ferguson: The Most Dangerous Arms Race in History. Plus.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/niall-ferguson-the-most-dangerous-arms-race-artificial-intelligence-front-page<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-06-03 06:20:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: www.thefp.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. It\u2019s Wednesday, June 3. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press\u2014and our take on the world at large. Today: Peter Savodnik on the California primaries. Spencer Klavan on how a 20-year-old\u2019s cheap horror film dethroned the latest Star Wars movie at the box office. Joe Nocera on the brilliance of Louis Armstrong. Plus much more.But first: Niall Ferguson on the unseen perils of artificial intelligence.Is artificial intelligence a blessing or a curse? It may be the defining question of the 21st century. The technology promises extraordinary benefits, from medical breakthroughs to unprecedented economic growth. But it also poses profound risks to how we live\u2014and perhaps even to the future of humanity.One thing we know is that the momentum behind more advanced AI is only building: On Monday, Anthropic\u2014the company behind the popular Claude model\u2014filed plans for an initial public offering that could value the company at nearly $1 trillion. Other AI giants are expected to follow suit.Meanwhile, President Trump yesterday signed an executive order asking AI companies to voluntarily submit powerful new models for government review just 30 days before public release\u2014a significantly watered-down version of the policy he was set to impose last month, which he reportedly rejected hours beforehand, saying it would \u201cget in the way\u201d of America\u2019s competition with China.Such are the stakes of the AI race: the promise and peril of unprecedented economic disruption, a winner-takes-all tussle for geopolitical supremacy.With so much on the line, things could go very wrong, very fast. That\u2019s the argument historian and Free Press columnist Niall Ferguson lays out in his essay for us today.\u201cThe unfolding history of artificial intelligence has now arrived at what may be its most dangerous moment,\u201d he writes. \u201cWe may be hurtling toward the most dangerous arms race in history.\u201d And we are doing so, argues Niall, when \u201cthe leadership of the competitors in this race is, to say the least, of mixed quality\u201d:The chief executives of the most important companies include at least one with a record of duplicity, and at least two egomaniacs. Meanwhile, the president of the United States is a former real estate developer and reality TV star, roughly half of whose public utterances are mere bluffs, and the leader of the People\u2019s Republic of China is a Marxist-Leninist who aspires to eclipse Mao Zedong as a dictator.What could possibly go wrong? For an answer to that question, read Niall\u2019s essay.\u2014Jillian LedermanLast night, Californians took to the polls in the state\u2019s \u201cjungle primary\u201d elections, teeing up an explosive one-on-one gubernatorial race and an exciting Los Angeles mayoral contest. At the time of writing, with 56 percent of votes counted in the Golden State, Republican challenger Steve Hilton leads the Gubernatorial race with 28 percent of the vote. In Los Angeles, with 63 percent of the votes counted, incumbent Karen Bass leads with 35 percent and former reality star Spencer Pratt is at 30 percent. Stay tuned for the thoughts of our man in Los Angeles, Peter Savodnik, on the final results later today. And while you wait, catch up with Peter\u2019s live coverage in The Free Press Forum last night.Tyler Cowen has long supported marijuana legalization. Now he weighs in on the consequences of the move, admitting that he did not predict many of its effects. But does that mean he now thinks he was wrong to back legal weed? And is there a way to adapt our policies to protect kids and public order? Read Tyler on legal marijuana, its downsides, and the right way to address them.If it weren\u2019t for President Trump and his Supreme Court picks, Roe v. Wade would almost certainly still be the law of the land. So why is the pro-life movement losing patience with him? Audrey Fahlberg spoke to some activists who feel that Trump has left them behind, and others who believe Trump is the only avenue for the pro-life cause, even if he is a fair-weather ally. Read this deep dive if you want to understand how abortion went from one of the most salient issues in our politics to an afterthought\u2014and where that leaves the pro-life movement.The No. 1 box office hit this weekend was directed by a 20-year-old YouTuber. It\u2019s called \u201cBackrooms,\u201d a mind-twisting horror film that portrays \u201cremake culture,\u201d a seemingly never-ending loop of recreations and remakes. And it earned an astounding $81.5 million domestically, easily outpacing Disney\u2019s newest Star Wars film. Spencer Klavan takes a deep look at \u201cBackrooms\u201d and its parallels to the world of AI, which Klavan calls \u201cthe ultimate digital remake machine.\u201d Read Klavan on the brave new world of Gen-Z art, and whether we now live in a world where replication and spin-offs are considered the highest forms of creativity.For the latest installment of our new Great Americans series, Joe Nocera pays tribute to jazz legend Louis Armstrong. Rising from the slums of New Orleans, Armstrong became \u201cthe first black entertainer to be truly embraced by Americans, whether white or black. Indeed, at the height of his fame, he was the most beloved entertainer in the world.\u201d But beyond that, what made the self-taught \u201cSatchmo\u201d a key figure in 20th-century life, what drove his genius, and how did he become an unlikely Cold Warrior? Read Joe\u2019s gorgeous piece. You won\u2019t be disappointed.MORE FROM THE FREE PRESSTHE NEWSBill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, speaks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House on January 9, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski\/AFP via Getty Images)President Trump tapped Bill Pulte, the current chief of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as acting Director of National Intelligence. Pulte is one of Trump\u2019s closest allies, sending criminal referrals to the Justice Department for Trump critics and leading the charge against former Fed chair Jerome Powell. Pulte will serve in both capacities simultaneously, according to the president. (Read Bethany McLean\u2019s terrific profile of Pulte, \u201cThe Man Behind Trump\u2019s Attack on the Fed.\u201d)The Department of Justice is officially scrapping the $1.8 billion \u201cAnti-Weaponization Fund\u201d after intense pushback from Republican allies in Congress. \u201cWe are not moving forward with the fund. Period,\u201d Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday. (Read Tanner Nau\u2019s reporting about January 6 rioters who want money from the fund, \u201cThey Stormed the Capitol. Now They Want Millions.\u201d)A large barrage of Russian missiles and drones killed at least 22 people in Kyiv, Ukraine, late Monday night. The attack included 650 drones and more than 70 cruise missiles, according to the Ukrainian air force, damaging dozens of residential buildings and medical facilities. President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote to President Trump last week, warning that the country is running low on American missile defense interceptors.The rescheduled White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner will be held on July 24, according to the association\u2019s president, CBS News\u2019 Weija Jang. The dinner will be held a day after the three-month mark of the assassination attempt at the Washington Hilton hotel, this time at the Waldorf Astoria hotel. Trump called the rescheduling a \u201csign of strength and fortitude.\u201dSecretary of State Marco Rubio was peppered with questions while testifying in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, his first public hearing since the beginning of the Iran war in February. Rubio said negotiations with Iran are ongoing during the current pause of hostilities, and that \u201cthere is the prospect\u201d that Iran would negotiate the future of its nuclear program.Embattled Maine Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner met with high-ranking Senate Democrats in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday afternoon. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was tight-lipped after the meeting, but told reporters, \u201cWe\u2019re going to beat [Maine Republican senator] Susan Collins and take back the Senate.\u201d Schumer initially backed Governor Janet Mills for the Democratic nomination; she suspended her primary bid in April.A wild bear injured four people in Fukushima, Japan, after it rampaged through two factories on Tuesday afternoon. It\u2019s the latest in a rising trend of bear attacks in the country, with authorities reporting 13 deaths in more than 230 attacks by bears in 2025. Last year, the Japanese army was dispatched to the city of Akita after 60 people were attacked by bears.
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Niall Ferguson: The Most Dangerous Arms Race in History. Plus.\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0 https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/niall-ferguson-the-most-dangerous-arms-race-artificial-intelligence-front-page Publish Date: 2026-06-03 06:20:00…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":225065,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!apEE!,w_1200,h_675,c_fill,f_jpg,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30dc82b2-e31e-441b-86f8-9ded9cd27fc0_1660x1056.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[20],"class_list":["post-225064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificial-intelligence"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225064"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225064"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":225066,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225064\/revisions\/225066"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/225065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}