There's A Reason Why Lawmakers Aren't Rushing To Police Artificial Intelligence

There is a rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence tools throughout society and they are becoming more powerful as time goes on. Despite its best efforts, Washington has fallen behind.

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A.I. regulation is stalling

Corporate America appears to be focusing on artificial intelligence (AI) as the trend to latch onto right now, thanks to the popularity of ChatGPT, which has stoked the popularity of this technology. One of the latest adopters of ChatGPT technology is Instacart, which is integrating a chatbot powered by ChatGPT into its grocery-shopping app to allow users to place orders. Yet fears are growing over the dangers of widespread A.I. use.

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However, there is one big issue in regard to this: Governments, notably Washington, have not kept pace with the technology's developments when it comes to regulations. Carly Kind, the director of the Ada Lovelace Institute, an organization that provides policy research on the future of artificial intelligence, told Trade Algo that by failing to set such guardrails, policymakers are creating the conditions for a race to the bottom in irresponsible artificial intelligence.

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Despite lawmakers' calls for tightening oversight, Washington has largely stayed away from the topic of A.I. rules, even as a few lawmakers have expressed concern over its growing ability to mimic humans. Representative Ted Lieu, a California Democrat, wrote to Trade Algo in January that he was "freaked out" by the emergence of A.I. tools.

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It's true that little has been done in terms of limiting the dangers of AI as well as protecting individuals, Trade Algo adds: there has not yet been a bill proposed to restrict facial-recognition applications or to reduce their dangers.

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Regulators are stepping into the void:

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• Several federal agencies, such as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), are using laws already on the books to police some types of corporate AI use in their businesses.

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• The European Union appears poised to pass a bill regulating some aspects of artificial intelligence, including facial recognition and aspects connected to crucial infrastructure. In order to comply with this legislation, A.I. companies would have to conduct risk assessments for their technology — and violators could be fined up to six percent of the company's global revenue.

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• It has been reported that Apple has delayed approving a new email app that uses ChatGPT technology in order to auto-generate text, according to The Wall Street Journal. Private companies are also exercising their muscles. According to reports, the company is concerned about the app generating inappropriate content for children.

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In the meantime, companies are buckling against potential regulations. Google's chief executive, Sundar Pichai, visited Brussels in 2020 to call for "sensible regulation" of artificial intelligence. Similarly, scores of tech companies lobbied against facial recognition regulations in the U.S. that same year. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce told Trade Algo, “We don't oppose regulation, but we would like smart regulation.”

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Despite the bill's failure to gain widespread support, Representative Don Beyer, Democrat of Virginia, said he was not concerned about the issue at the moment as it "doesn't feel urgent for members of Congress to take action."

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Congressional Representative Jay Obernolte, a California Republican (and the only member of Congress with a master's degree in Artificial Intelligence) said that lawmakers do not even understand the technology: “I spend a lot of time explaining to my colleagues that the main danger from Artificial Intelligence will not come from evil robots with red lasers coming out of their eyes.”

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