Extinction Bounties

Policy-based deterrence for the 21st century.

Policy-research disclaimer

Extinction Bounties publishes theoretical economic and legal mechanisms intended to stimulate scholarly and public debate on catastrophic-risk governance. The site offers policy analysis and advocacy only in the sense of outlining possible legislative or contractual frameworks.

No legal or financial advice

Nothing here should be treated as a substitute for qualified legal counsel, financial due diligence, or regulatory guidance. Readers remain responsible for ensuring their actions comply with the laws and professional standards of their own jurisdictions.

Exploratory and personal views

All scenarios, numerical examples and opinions are research hypotheses presented by the author in a personal capacity. They do not represent the views of the author's employer, funding bodies, or any governmental authority.

Implementation caveats

Any real-world adoption of these ideas would require democratic deliberation, statutory authority, and robust safeguards against misuse. References to enforcement, penalties, or "bounties" are illustrative models, not instructions or invitations to engage in private policing or unlawful conduct. Nothing here is directed at any identifiable individual — see non-targeting.

No warranty and limited liability

Content is provided "as is" without warranty of completeness or accuracy; the author disclaims liability for losses arising from reliance on this material.

By continuing beyond this notice you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and accepted these conditions.

About

10 September 2026 · last revised 11 September 2026

I’m Andrew Quinn. I write software for a living, run a small consultancy called Siilikuin, and keep a personal blog at andrew-quinn.me. This is the only page on the site with my name on it, on purpose: the argument should stand or fall without it.

Why this site exists

I first wrote this argument down in 2022, as a short post called Bounties on AI Researchers, which you can still read on my blog. The core bet has not changed since: it is easier to shift the Nash equilibrium of working on frontier AI in the first place than it is to build safe AI. When I republished that post in 2023 I said I no longer believed a word of it. I have since come back around, and this site is the full version of the argument I had then only sketched.

I am generally wary of putting political opinions under my own name, for the reasons I set out in The Dark Forest of Political Communication. An earlier build-out of this argument was anonymous for exactly that reason. This one is signed, because a proposal to change the law ought to have someone willing to stand behind it.

I am not against AI

Despite everything on this site, I have no problem at all with working with existing models. I use them heavily in my own work and I am an enthusiastic proponent of them. They are the best productivity multiplier I have seen in my career.

My worry is about where the curve goes. Plot the value of AI against its capability and I think you get a volcano: the slope climbs steadily, each step more useful than the last, right up to a rim. Past the rim, the same step drops you into the crater, and what was a productivity multiplier becomes an existential threat. Nothing about the slope warns you where the rim is. Extinction bounties are aimed at the rim, not at the slope.

Contact

The best way to reach me is email: my first name, at siilikuin.com.

If something on this site reads as though it is about you or your organisation, please say so. The non-targeting page explains why it is not, and why I would rather change a page than leave someone feeling accused by it.

To cite this page: "About." Extinction Bounties, last revised 2026-09-11. https://extinction-bounties.com/meta/about/