A former university student recounts a regrettable prank from his first year, where he and classmates falsely announced a computer virus to humanities students, sparking panic and chaos. The incident resulted in lost work and disciplinary action from the facilities director, who demanded apology letters. Decades later, the narrator draws a parallel between that irresponsible act and the current discourse surrounding artificial intelligence.

He criticizes ex-Anthropic employee Jacob Coxon and Alignment Science lead Evan Hubinger for claiming a greater than 10% probability that AI will kill all humans within the next decade. The author argues these extrapolations rely on hand-wavy speculation regarding hacking infrastructure or bioweapons, striking at the heart of families with newborns. The controversy highlights the dangers of sowing fear irresponsibly, echoing the panic sown during the campus prank.

The aftermath of that event serves as a cautionary tale about the real-world consequences of technological hubris and the spread of unwarranted dread.