The head of the AI cybersecurity division at Anthropic left the company, admitting that "the world is in danger."

Mrinank Sharma Leaves Anthropic: Letter to Colleagues and Future Plans

Former head of the AI safety research division at Anthropic, Mrinank Sharma (Mrinank Sharma), posted his farewell letter online earlier this week. In it he explains why he is leaving, shares reflections on current risks, and discusses what he plans to do next.

What’s in the Letter
* Achievements – Sharma notes that “I’ve achieved everything I wanted here.” Among the projects mentioned are developing protective mechanisms against bioterrorism using AI and researching the societal impact of neural networks.

* Reason for Leaving – The author concluded it was time to move on. He has been constantly pondering “the danger that AI, biological weapons, and a chain of interconnected crises can bring, unfolding right now.” In his view we are approaching a threshold after which wisdom must grow proportionally to our ability to influence the world; otherwise unpredictable consequences await us.

* Cultural Barriers – Sharma emphasizes how difficult it is to preserve values under pressure. He saw this both within himself and within the company, where sometimes one has to give up something important for external influence, as well as in society at large.

* Future Plans – After leaving he intends to work on projects that align with his principles and also study poetry and other creative pursuits.

What’s Happening at Anthropic
* Several senior developers have already left the company, amplifying a wave of staff turnover.

* Anthropic is negotiating additional investment. If the deal succeeds, market value could rise to $350 billion.

* Last week a new version of the Claude Opus 4.6 model was launched. It improves office productivity and programming efficiency, expands the context window for handling large documents, and supports more complex tasks.

Where to Find the Letter
The full text of Sharma’s farewell letter is published in a Business Insider article. This provides a deeper look at his thoughts and motivations.