SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Center for AI Safety (CAIS), a leading nonprofit focused on reducing catastrophic risks from artificial intelligence, today announced that John Sherman, a Peabody Award-winning journalist, and acclaimed media strategist, has joined the organization as its new Director of Public Engagement.
Sherman will lead a bold new initiative to bring AI risk out of the lab and into public consciousness — turning it into a kitchen-table conversation for people across the country.
“For too long this conversation has been hidden from the public,” said Sherman. “It’s time to get loud. People deserve to know what’s coming — and that they can have a role to play in shaping it.”
Sherman brings a rare blend of storytelling expertise and strategic communications leadership. His career spans investigative journalism, commercial filmmaking, and culture-shifting campaigns. He has been honored with a Peabody Award, a duPont-Columbia Award, a National Emmy Award, a National Edward R. Murrow Award.
In late 2023, Sherman launched For Humanity: An AI Risk Podcast after reading about AI existential risk and becoming alarmed. In just 18 months, the show grew to over 150,000 YouTube subscribers, becoming one of the largest public platforms addressing existential risk from advanced AI.
Now, with support from CAIS, Sherman will expand his efforts by launching a network of new AI risk focused podcasts and sub-brands that tap into humor, parental instinct, and other powerful avenues to connect with audiences far beyond the academic and policy worlds.
CAIS Executive Director Dan Hendrycks said “CAIS is thrilled to welcome John Sherman. John is building a team at CAIS committed to reaching everyday people in new ways with a clear, urgent message — that the public deserves to know what’s going on with superintelligence and have a say in the matter.”
The work will also include high-impact public campaigns using:
Emotionally resonant video ads and digital contentNew podcasts Strategic influencer collaborationsTargeted print and media placementsGrassroots community engagement and partnerships
Sherman will serve as CAIS’s national spokesperson, available for interviews across podcasts, television, radio and print and other media.
“Everyone needs to know the brutal truth: Human extinction from AI is not academic or remote— it is quite literally your family and everyone you know and love, slaughtered,” Sherman said. “The greatest threat to our lives and our families is advanced AI. We’re building machines with the near-term potential to end all life on Earth — machines we cannot control, and don’t even understand. This needs to stop, and that starts with the general public understanding the dire moment we are in.”
“We will normalize this conversation,” he continued. “We’re going to make AI existential risk part of everyday conversations — in homes across the country. If you can talk about AI risk at home, you’re already part of the solution.”
About CAIS
Center for AI Safety is a San Francisco-based nonprofit conducting research and advocacy to reduce large-scale risks from advanced artificial intelligence. Through technical research, policy advising, and public engagement, CAIS works to ensure AI is developed safely and aligned with human values.
For media inquiries:
media@safe.ai