Sofia Liguori

Former research engineer, Google DeepMind

Worried, this week

Capability 4Outlook 1

2 statements over 2 weeks, last spoke Oct 29.

Where they stand

Against all 33 people scored in Week 44. Bars count people at each score; black is Liguori, the dashed line is the average.

Capability4 How fast is AI moving?

Average 4.5

Outlook1 Will it go well?

Average 2.5

What they've said

Thursday, Oct 29Week 44
On Democracy Now!, Liguori said AI poses concrete risk to society, coming first from how it is being built into military, financial and data systems, and it is true that as models become more powerful, it is increasingly dangerous to integrate these systems.
In her first broadcast interview since resigning over Google's military contracts, she said the focus on rogue agents shifts attention from this unrestrained, unregulated integration of the systems without red lines, without any — like, without appropriate safety measures. She also called AI surveillance a real concrete danger for the civic society and for democracies.
Details and sources
The host read from her resignation letter, first reported Oct 21: Racing to deploy agentic AI in this society and in this historical moment is a terrible idea, and will definitely be a net evil. Quotes are from Democracy Now!'s rush transcript.
Democracy Now!
Wednesday, Oct 21Week 43
Resigning from Google DeepMind in protest of its Pentagon contract, research engineer Liguori wrote to colleagues I no longer believe that our technology will have a net positive impact on society. and Racing to deploy agentic AI in this society and historical moment is a terrible idea, and will definitely be a net evil.
Liguori, who worked on AI for power-grid routing, told The Intercept she could not stay at a company helping make war more brutal: AI for targeting is very dangerous; it creates a system where it's easier to escalate the brutality of war. She said internal posts were deleted and that the company was very effective at creating a pervasive sense of fear, which induces self-censorship.
Details and sources
Reported by Sam Biddle on Oct 21; the article says she resigned that week without giving the day, so this is dated by publication. The letter was sent internally and a copy is on her personal site, which was not opened. Google spokesperson Tom Hewett said it has dedicated channels for employees to safely raise any concerns. A departure-level moment; candidate for the roster if she keeps speaking.
The Intercept