Jonathan V. Last

AI position

Aware of x-risk

In "We Can Choose Not to Let AI Destroy Us" (Feb 2026) he engages with AI-destroys-us framing but pivots the argument toward economic/social collapse from rapid disruption rather than treating classic extinction-risk arguments as the throughline; a Bulwark Podcast segment titled "Can We Trust AI Tycoons?" (Apr 2026) also touches the theme, though transcript detail wasn't accessible.

Why influential

Controls commissioning, placement, talent, headlines or institutional resources, making this person a gatekeeper for what receives sustained attention. Primary policy lanes: elections; republican politics; democracy; media.

Who pays attention

Institutional Republicans, anti-Trump conservatives, Democratic strategists, donors and democracy-focused professionals

Work samples

• We Can Choose Not to Let AI Destroy Us

  Feb 13, 2026 · newsletter

  Argues AI's real danger is the pace of economic disruption, not the technology itself; cites Ellie Pavlick, Emily Bender/Alex Hanna, and Marc Andreessen.

• The AI War Is Coming

  Jan 28, 2025 · newsletter

  Frames the DeepSeek moment and AI race as a proxy for U.S.-China geopolitical competition.

• The Week That AI Went to Scale

  Jan 1, 2024 · newsletter

  Argues generative AI's dissemination is a historic technological inflection point.

• Trump Is Imploding—We Need to CRUSH Him! Plus: Can We Trust AI Tycoons?

  Apr 7, 2026 · podcast

  Bulwark Podcast segment questioning trust in AI industry leaders; full guest/transcript detail not verified.

AI-world contacts

• Ellie Pavlick — Computer scientist / AI researcher, Brown University

  • Wrote aboutdirectness unclassified — Quoted by Last on the epistemic uncertainty of AI's trajectory in his Feb 2026 piece on AI risk.

• Emily Bender — Linguist, co-author of 'The AI Con', University of Washington

  • Wrote aboutdirectness unclassified — Cited by Last as a critical voice characterizing LLM hype/limitations.

• Alex Hanna — Director of Research; co-host of Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000, DAIR (Distributed AI Research Institute)

  • Wrote aboutdirectness unclassified — Cited alongside Bender as an AI-hype critic in Last's piece.