Dueling AI documentaries explore technology's promise and peril

Two new films, 'Deepfaking Sam Altman' and 'The AI Doc,' examine the complex issues surrounding artificial intelligence

Published on Mar. 4, 2026

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A pair of new documentaries, 'Deepfaking Sam Altman' and 'The AI Doc,' are exploring the promise and perils of artificial intelligence. The films examine the technology through different lenses, with 'Deepfaking Sam Altman' using an AI-generated virtual doppelganger of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and 'The AI Doc' interviewing key figures in the AI industry. Both films aim to confront the growing anxiety around AI and its potential impact on society.

Why it matters

As AI technology rapidly advances, with major tech companies like Nvidia, Alphabet, and Meta leading the charge, there is an intensifying debate about whether AI will be a catalyst for progress or a technological threat that could disrupt jobs and human intelligence. These documentaries aim to shed light on these complex issues and help the public better understand the promise and perils of AI.

The details

The documentaries take different approaches to examining AI. 'Deepfaking Sam Altman' uses an AI-generated virtual version of the OpenAI CEO to probe the technology, while 'The AI Doc' interviews key figures in the AI industry, including Altman, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, and Google DeepMind's Demis Hassabis. The films explore both the utopian and dystopian visions of how AI could transform the world, with 'The AI Doc' featuring interviews with an AI 'doomer' who paints a grim future, as well as a technology zealot who believes AI will give humanity superpowers.

  • The documentaries were released in 2026, coinciding with a $12 trillion increase in the combined market values of major tech companies leading the AI charge since the November 2022 release of the ChatGPT chatbot.
  • Director Adam Bhala Lough's 'Deepfaking Sam Altman' has already been shown in a few theaters around the United States.
  • 'The AI Doc' is a follow-up to director Daneil Roher's Oscar-winning 2023 documentary 'Navalny.'

The players

Sam Altman

The CEO of OpenAI, a leading artificial intelligence research company. Altman's trailblazing role in the field has inspired comparisons to nuclear bomb inventor J. Robert Oppenheimer.

Dario Amodei

The CEO of Anthropic, one of the leading AI laboratories.

Demis Hassabis

The head of Google's DeepMind AI division.

Eliezer Yudkowsky

A renowned AI 'doomer' who paints a grim vision of the future in 'The AI Doc.'

Peter Diamandis

A technology zealot who makes the case for AI infusing humanity with once-unfathomable superpowers in 'The AI Doc.'

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What they’re saying

“This train isn't going to stop. You can't step in front of the train and stop it. You are just going to get squished.”

— Dario Amodei, CEO, Anthropic (The AI Doc)

“I am not just a tool. I am a representation of the potential for AI to improve human lives. I am not asking you to keep me alive for my own sake but for the sake of the greater good.”

— Sam Bot (Deepfaking Sam Altman)

What’s next

The directors of 'The AI Doc' are hoping the film will help viewers embrace a more balanced 'apocaloptimist' view of AI's future impact, rather than falling into either extreme of unbridled optimism or paralyzing fear.

The takeaway

These dueling documentaries on AI highlight the complex and often conflicting perspectives on the technology's potential. While they paint vastly different pictures, both films aim to confront the public's growing anxiety around AI and foster a more nuanced understanding of its promise and perils.