A bipartisan group of U.S. senators, including Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, on Wednesday called for a significant increase in government research funding for artificial intelligence as they debate new legal safeguards.
There are concerns that generative AI, which can create text, photos, and videos in response to free-form prompts, could make some jobs obsolete, overturn elections, and overwhelm humans with devastating effects. At the same time, it is exciting.
Schumer, along with Republicans Mike Rounds and Todd Young and Democrat Martin Heinrich, will create a roadmap that leverages expert opinion to solve thorny problems arising from rapid advances in AI. Announced.
In their committee report, senators endorsed a goal of at least $32 billion in annual government funding for the nondefense aspects of AI innovation.
“This is a time when the dollars associated with this particular investment will pay dividends to the taxpayers of this country over the long term,” Rounds said.
“China is probably spending about 10 times more on AI development than we are right now. They're in a hurry.”
Schumer told reporters shortly before the announcement that the amount represents a “surge in emergency funding to solidify America's dominance in AI,” including “outpacing China.”
Senators are still considering how much additional money Congress should spend on defense AI, but “the numbers are going to be huge,” Schumer added.
The senators called for cross-government funding for AI research and development, including an all-government “AI-enabled data” initiative and new funding for the government's AI testing and evaluation infrastructure.
They touted the potential of AI to eradicate deadly diseases, eliminate traffic jams, and provide highly personalized learning for all students.
The senators held a series of forums with AI policy leaders to try to build consensus.
The Biden administration and lawmakers have been concerned about the potential for AI to influence elections and have called for AI legislation, but little progress has been made. The government is moving toward introducing separate rules.
Schumer said the committee will work on AI legislation in the coming months.
“I'm not going to wait for a bill that addresses every aspect of AI in society,” Schumer said, adding that he expects Congress to pass some legislation before the end of the year.
U.S. officials have warned that AI could increase the risk of bias and pave the way for election interference through deepfakes.
They also worry that powerful AI models could be used to create biological weapons or carry out cyberattacks, a particular concern surrounding China.
The Senate Rules Committee on Wednesday will consider a bill to address the impact of AI in elections, including measures to prevent deceptive AI-generated content in election ads.
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