A bipartisan working group led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) on Wednesday released a long-awaited framework for guidance on artificial intelligence (AI).
The AI roadmap encourages allocating at least $32 billion to non-defense AI innovation, but is thin on calls for specific regulations as part of the guidance released.
The 31-page document comes after months of closed-door AI insights forums convened by Schumer, which invited experts and stakeholders — including technology CEOs, civil rights leaders and researchers — to discuss the benefits and risks of AI with the senators. Schumer worked alongside Senators Mike Rounds (RS.D.), Martin Heinrich (DN.M.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.) to craft the AI guidance.
The proposed $32 billion in funding through 2026, one of the most straightforward details of the guidance, comes from a spending level proposed by the National Artificial Intelligence Security Commission. Recommended funding goals aim to boost U.S. innovation in AI to maintain global competitiveness.
But the roadmap appears to avoid any calls for new laws to regulate AI, as some lawmakers and advocates have advocated. The roadmap’s priorities include ensuring enforcement of existing AI laws and encouraging congressional committees to work on considering new laws.
“After speaking with advocates, critics, academics, labor groups, civil rights leaders, stakeholders, developers and more, our working group was able to identify key policy areas that have bipartisan consensus. Now, the work continues with our Committees, Chairs and Ranking Members to develop and advance legislation with urgency and humility,” Schumer said in a statement.
The roadmap states that the AI Working Group “supports a strong and comprehensive federal data privacy law to protect personal information.” The chairmen of the House and Senate commerce committees in April released a new bipartisan data privacy proposal, the American Privacy Rights Act of 2024.
Schumer highlighted election risks as a high priority for addressing AI concerns. The script, however, is brief in its guidance on elections and democracy. The guidance “encourages relevant committees and AI developers and deployers to promote effective watermarking and digital content provenance as it relates to AI-generated or augmented election content.”
On Wednesday morning, the Senate Rules Committee is considering three bills on AI, including two related to transparency and regulation of AI in electoral material.
As Congress continues to weigh in on regulation, technology companies continue to accelerate AI upgrades.
In back-to-back live announcements on Monday and Tuesday, Google and OpenAI revealed updates to their respective generative AI tools, Gemini and ChatGPT.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
