There have been extremely smart people worried about this exact scenario for 20 years or more. Nothing about this is new.

In any case, what's the probability at which a possible extinction event becomes a risk worth taking? Even if there's just a 1% likelihood of current research bringing about a superintelligent AGI, and just a 1% likelihood of that AGI causing an existential catastrophe, no rational person should accept the risk, unless it was clear that not accepting it would yield an even worse outcome.

superintelligent AGI is what everyone invested in and why these companies have insane valuations. If they all slowed and said "well wait, we're going to hold on AGI" it would be the biggest rug pull in financial history.