At a White House summit on July 21, the Biden administration brought together the heads of seven different A.I. companies.
A lot of the big names were there—Meta, Google, OpenAI—and they all signed “voluntary commitments” to safeguard artificial intelligence. In the Senate, Chuck Schumer proposes a framework legislators can use to tackle A.I. issues.
But while the A.I. industry is moving at a breakneck pace, Washington is, as usual, slow to regulate.
On Friday’s episode of What Next: TBD, I spoke with Makena Kelly, who covers politics and policy for the Verge, about whether Washington can keep up with A.I.
Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Lizzie O’Leary: What does this summit indicate about the Biden administration’s approach to regulating A.I.?
Makena Kelly: The Biden administration has been pushing for some regulation on artificial intelligence because that industry has grown tremendously, not just in size but also in influence. I think the summit at the White House was the Biden administration saying, “We need to do something, quick.”
Could you tell me what Congress has been doing regarding regulation?
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has proposed a framework for how lawmakers should approach A.I. regulation, but Congress moves very slowly. The executive branch, however, has some powers that Congress doesn’t have, including the presidential bully pulpit and executive powers.
The goal of this summit was to get all the major stakeholders together and set these standards, which is essential, but there’s no way to enforce those standards.
The White House said in that press briefing with reporters that an executive order is coming down the line now. Still, it declined to accurately describe what that order would be, saying it would be an interagency effort. So, when discussing why this meeting was important, it’s because…