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The leaders of three of the world’s most prominent artificial intelligence companies have joined forces to urge U.S. lawmakers to strengthen safeguards against the potential misuse of AI in biological weapons development.
Dario Amodei of Anthropic, Sam Altman of OpenAI, and Mustafa Suleyman of Microsoft AI signed an open letter to Congress calling for mandatory screening of synthetic DNA and RNA orders. The letter argues that rapidly improving AI systems could make it easier for bad actors to access knowledge and tools that were previously difficult to obtain, raising concerns about the creation of biological weapons. The initiative was organized by the Foundation for American Innovation and the Institute for Progress.
The letter was also signed by dozens of experts from the life sciences and national security communities, as well as companies involved in synthetic DNA manufacturing, including Twist Bioscience and Ansa Biotechnologies. The signatories are asking Congress to require all sellers of synthetic genetic material to screen both customers and orders, while maintaining records that could assist future biosecurity investigations.
“AI systems are improving rapidly, and alongside incredible benefits to science and medicine, there is a real possibility that the knowledge barriers which have historically prevented bad actors from obtaining biological weapons will meaningfully erode,” the letter states.
The warning comes as AI adoption continues to accelerate worldwide. Research from Stanford University found that generative AI tools reached more than half of the global population within three years, a faster adoption rate than either personal computers or the internet. Recent reports have also highlighted concerns that publicly available AI models can provide information related to the development and dissemination of biological weapons.
Although biological attacks are rare, experts consider them uniquely dangerous because biological agents can be difficult to detect and, in some cases, highly contagious. The 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States, which killed five people and infected 22 others, remain one of the most notable examples of the threat posed by biological weapons.
Lawmakers have already begun considering stronger oversight. Earlier this year, Senators Tom Cotton and Amy Klobuchar introduced the Biosecurity Modernization and Innovation Act of 2026, which would require synthetic DNA and RNA suppliers to screen orders and customers for potential risks.