By Nick Robins-Early
Publication Date: 2026-06-07 10:00:00
When a 20-year-old Texas man was arrested earlier this year for allegedly trying to burn down OpenAI’s headquarters and Sam Altman’s home, authorities found an anti-AI manifesto next to his lighter and a jug of kerosene. It was one of several attacks that have raised concerns among researchers, the tech industry and law enforcement agencies about rising anti-tech extremism.
In April, an Italian “nature-conscious” Instagram influencer was arrested in Rome and accused of plotting a series of anti-tech attacks inspired by Ted “The Unabomber” Kaczynski. Two self-proclaimed “eco-fascists” who carried out a deadly anti-Muslim attack on a San Diego mosque last month also cited “AI bullshit” and JD Vance’s ties to Palantir as motivations for their violence in their manifesto. An Indianapolis city councilman woke up earlier this year to shots fired at his home before finding a note reading “NO DATA CENTERS.”
The growing public backlash to…
