“Group of Four” Senators Convene AI Forums with Focus on IP, Doomsday Scenarios and National Security
Summary
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Todd Young (R-IN) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) continue to lead the way on Congress’s push to AI legislation. The lawmakers convened three additional forums over the past few weeks: Seventh Forum: Transparency/IP Protections (November 29, 2023): The seventh forum was centered around transparency in AI and the intellectual property (IP) protections that creative fields should be afforded. Regarding IP rights for creative fields, lead entertainment associations such as SAG-AFTRA and the Motion Picture Association (MPA) debated how the government should approach regulations for digital image, voice and likeness rights, and leading journalism associations warned forum attendees about large-language models (LLMs) being a catalyst of misinformation and disinformation. Regarding transparency in AI, Duke Professor Cynthia Rudin advocated promoting the development of interpretable machine learning (ML) models and preventing black-box models from being used in high-risk use cases. Leader Schumer concluded the forum by echoing the calls of attendees to protect American companies’ IP, enforce transparency in the training data of AI systems, and expand the Biden administration’s executive order (EO) to address disclosure requirements. The full list of speakers, and their statements, is available here. Eighth Forum: Doomsday Scenarios (December 6, 2023): The eighth forum focused on Department of Defense Launches Digital On-Demand Initiative On November 16, 2023, the CDAO launched its “Digital On-Demand” initiative, which provides access to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Horizon’s library of AI resources. The platform is available to all military and civilian workforce in the DOD, with a goal of developing a basic understanding of emerging technologies, and how they can be applied throughout the department. The platform contains short-form educational content focused on entry-level knowledge on AI and other technologies. The program is available through Digital University, a joint venture between the US Air Force and US Space Force for delivering ondemand training materials. DoD employees can access the platform by visiting Digital University’s website, registering an account using their .mil email address, and searching “MIT Horizon.” Congressional Action Lawmakers Advance AI Provisions in Must-Pass Defense Bill On December 7, 2023, House and Senate Armed Services committee leaders unveiled their conference report for the fiscal year (FY) 2024 defense authorization bill. The must-pass bill includes several provisions regarding AI, including policy oversight, a competition for developing technology to detect the use of generative AI and programs to investigate and adopt AI for specific needs. For more information and an overview of key provisions, see Akin’s coverage here. “Group of Four” Convene AI Forums with Focus on IP, Doomsday Scenarios and National Security Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Todd Young (R-IN), and Mike Rounds (R-SD) continue to lead the way on Congress’s push to AI legislation. The lawmakers convened three additional forums over the past few weeks: “doomsday scenarios,” discussing all risks associated with the development and deployment of AI. Leader Schumer focused his questions on artificial general intelligence; whether it was achievable and whether that should be the biggest concern in the case of doomsday scenarios. In addition to the “Group of Four,” Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Alex Padilla (D-CA) both attended the forum. The full list of speakers, and their statements, is available here. Ninth Forum: National Security (December 6, 2023): The ninth and final forum encompassed AI’s intersection with national security, and how AI can be maximized to bolster America’s military capabilities. Leader Schumer emphasized the importance of leading in competition with respect to China, as well as utilizing AI systems for defense capabilities. Participants also discussed the need to establish an AI-literate workforce, maintain the talent pipeline, enhance the clearance process and create new pathways for digital workers. The full list of speakers, and their statements, is available here.
