As the tech sector issues warnings about AI's potential to pose an existential threat to humanity, entertainment labor unions are urging the public to focus on the tangible impacts currently affecting workers.
NewsScreen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio ArtistsWriters Guild of America East
Hollywood Unions Criticize AI "Apocalypse" Narrative, Highlighting Immediate Threats to Workers
In an interview with The Verge, Duncan Crabtree Ireland, chief negotiator for the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), stated that the union has already secured enforceable guardrails to regulate how AI is implemented by major employers in the industry. While acknowledging broader societal implications, he suggested that some claims regarding AI as an extinction-level threat could be hyperbole, noting that "doomerism" is often used by AI companies to generate buzz.
Sam Wheeler, executive director of the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE), expressed a more critical view of tech industry warnings. He argued that while the union views unregulated AI as an existential threat to workers and democracy, the discourse should focus on concrete harms—such as worker disempowerment, disinformation, and rising energy costs—rather than apocalyptic scenarios. Wheeler emphasized that addressing these real-world consequences and holding executives accountable is the most effective way to safeguard against worst-case outcomes.
Sources
- What Hollywood thinks about existential AI warnings （The Verge AI, 2026-09-18）