US equity futures were edging lower pre-bell Monday as traders evaluated a call for a slowdown in the advancement of artificial intelligence models and the upcoming Federal Reserve policy decision.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.3% lower, S&P 500 futures were down 0.6%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.5% lower.

In an essay published on Saturday, Anthropic Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei called for slowing the pace at which companies improved the capabilities of AI models, citing risks of losing control, the misuse of AI for cyberattacks and bioterrorism, and serious economic disruption.

Amodei's proposal was backed by other major AI players, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SpaceX (SPCX) CEO Elon Musk.

The Federal Reserve policy session starts Tuesday and concludes with a rate announcement on Wednesday. There is an 88.5% chance the Fed will raise rates by 0.25%, according to the CME Group FedWatch indicator.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 3.7% at $108.47 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 3.4% higher at $103.41 per barrel.

The economic calendar is vacant.