Diane (Head of Product for Research at @Anthropic) discussed how her perspective on AI progress has shifted, countering recent skepticism about agent timelines. Q: What's one thing you've changed your mind on in AI in the last year? "I actually think we are closer to 'transformative long-running AI' than I expected even starting the year. Like it actually feels like the building blocks are kind of there." Q: Do you fit into [Anthropic's] aggressive ASI timelines? "I would say my timelines have probably moved up this year based on... models like Opus 4.5." She emphasizes that we aren't hitting a technical wall, but rather a product one: "I feel like the building blocks are actually closer than we think. And that it's actually more of like a product overhang... product opportunities to express it."