The six-month AI pause demand had a specific target: training beyond GPT-4
The March 2023 open letter called for a public, verifiable training pause. Its published signatories included Elon Musk and Yoshua Bengio.
The short version
- The March 22, 2023 letter asked for at least six months without training systems more powerful than GPT-4.
- It called for government intervention if labs could not quickly agree, while explicitly distinguishing its request from a pause on all AI development.
Why it matters. The letter turned concern about advanced AI into a specific public demand directed at laboratories and governments.
A deadline and a threshold
The Future of Life Institute’s open letter asked AI labs for a pause that was public, verifiable and shared across major participants. It proposed using that interval to develop safety protocols with independent experts.
Its published prominent signatories included Elon Musk and Yoshua Bengio. The threshold was training beyond GPT-4—not every application, experiment or use of AI.
Public advocacy, not a hidden identity
The organization, demand and signatory list were public. The letter documents an attempt to influence AI development openly. It does not, by itself, establish which later policies it changed or any signer’s position today.
A dated record
- March 22, 2023
The advocacy letter is published.
Future of Life Institute · source ↓
The supporting record
The March 2023 letter called for a pause of at least six months on training systems more powerful than GPT-4.
The published prominent signatories include Elon Musk and Yoshua Bengio.
What we do not yet know
- A causal account of which subsequent decisions the letter influenced.
- The present position of every historical signatory on every proposed policy.
Original documents, with context
Sources you can inspect
1. Public advocacy · Future of Life Institute
Pause Giant AI Experiments: an open letter
Evidence of a public advocacy position at that time. Signing a letter does not prove hidden coordination or establish the signer's current position.
Publication: 2023-03-22 · Checked: 2026-09-07
Source record: fli-pause-letter
Location in source: Letter and public signatories2. Public advocacy record · Future of Life Institute
Pause letter: published prominent signatories
Names and affiliations are historical to the letter; this is the same underlying advocacy record, not independent corroboration.
Publication: March 2023 · Checked: 2026-09-07
Source record: fli-pause-signatories
Location in source: Prominent signatory list
Corrections & additional evidence · support@aipublicopinion.com
