WASHINGTON, Sept 13 — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is convening a high-profile gathering of U.S. tech industry leaders, including Tesla’s Elon Musk and Meta Platforms’ Mark Zuckerberg, for a confidential discussion on the formulation of artificial intelligence (AI) regulations. The meeting, scheduled for Wednesday on Capitol Hill, aims to facilitate a dialogue on the necessary safeguards for AI technologies.
Schumer emphasized the complexity and significance of legislating AI, describing it as “one of the most complex and important subjects Congress has ever faced.” The surge in investment and user engagement following the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT has brought the topic to the forefront of legislative discussions.
The congressional leaders are keen on establishing protective measures against the potential misuse of deepfakes, preventing election meddling, and securing critical infrastructures from AI-induced threats. The forum will also host other notable figures such as Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, among others.
The day-long session, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, seeks to foster a consensus on promoting safe innovation in the AI sector. Schumer, who previously discussed AI matters with Musk in April, is encouraging participants to deliberate on the pivotal role of Congress in this domain.
Earlier this year, Musk and a cohort of AI specialists and business leaders advocated for a temporary halt in the development of systems surpassing the capabilities of OpenAI’s GPT-4, highlighting the potential societal risks.
As part of a series of initiatives, Congress is hosting three distinct AI hearings this week. Microsoft President Brad Smith urged the Senate Judiciary subcommittee to mandate “safety brakes” for AI overseeing critical infrastructures, drawing parallels with existing safety mechanisms in various industries.
The global regulatory landscape is rapidly evolving to govern generative AI technologies, capable of producing texts and images that are nearly indistinguishable from authentic creations. In response, several companies, including Adobe and IBM, have endorsed President Joe Biden’s voluntary AI guidelines introduced in July, which advocate for measures like watermarking AI-generated materials to prevent misuse.
The Biden administration continues its efforts to steer AI development in a safe direction, with plans underway to issue an executive order concerning AI.
