Tech Industry Titans Gathered in One Place... Unanimous Call for Government-Level AI Regulation

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer Leads Congressional Forum Attendance

American tech moguls have voiced concerns about the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) technology that escapes human control and called for government-level regulations.

On the 13th (local time), Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate Majority Leader, said at the 'AI Insight Forum' held privately in Congress to discuss AI regulation, "Regulating AI is the most difficult task we have ever undertaken, but we can no longer be ostriches burying their heads in the sand," emphasizing, "If we do not step up, the situation will worsen."

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla. [Photo by AFP Yonhap News]

The forum was attended by about 20 key figures leading the AI industry in the U.S., including Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the developer of 'ChatGPT'; Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla; Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta; Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft (MS); Satya Nadella, CEO of MS; Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia; Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google; as well as about 60 senators. The discussion focused on concerns about the risks and harms that AI technology, still evolving, could bring, alongside considerations to promote AI technological development. These CEOs unanimously agreed that government intervention is necessary to reduce the possibility of misuse of AI technology beyond human control.

Musk warned at the meeting, "(AI) has tremendous potential but also carries risks to civilization," adding, "AI can be a double-edged sword." In response to reporters' questions, he argued that there should be a federal government AI department responsible for AI regulation. He said, "Because the consequences of AI going wrong are severe, we need proactive measures rather than reactive ones," and suggested that a federal AI department could operate similarly to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Regarding the meeting, he added, "It seems a strong consensus was formed," calling it "a meeting that could be historically significant for the future of civilization."

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta (right).
Photo by AFP Yonhap News

Zuckerberg also agreed on the necessity of regulation through government intervention. He emphasized, "AI is an emerging technology, and ultimately the government will have responsibility to balance technological development," adding, "It is important to create regulatory standards unique to the United States." He further noted, "Because the harms of AI can be serious, proactive measures are more important than reactive ones."

Zuckerberg identified two key aspects for realizing AI's potential and managing its risks: 'security' and 'accessibility.' Meta has aggressively increased accessibility to AI technology by, for example, releasing application programming interfaces (APIs) for large language models that form the basis of AI. This API release aims to encourage more companies to utilize their AI models, thereby expanding the ecosystem and gaining a lock-in effect by increasing new services applying their AI technology. AI technology developers like OpenAI are also unveiling new services in the same context.

However, concerns were also raised that such open-source technology could fall into the hands of malicious actors or be used irresponsibly, resulting in negative outcomes.

Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google.
Photo by EPA Yonhap News

CEO Pichai emphasized the role Congress can play in the spread of AI technology. He proposed agendas such as policy encouragement (immigration law reform) to attract R&D investment and talented individuals to the U.S., increasing government-level AI utilization, medical applications like improving cancer detection rates, and addressing job issues to ensure everyone benefits.

Gates highlighted discussions on how AI can positively transform society, emphasizing that AI could be used to solve global hunger problems.

CNBC reported that when Senator Schumer was asked whether he agreed with AI regulation at the meeting, all attendees unanimously agreed on regulation. Senator Maria Cantwell (Democrat), who leads the Commerce Committee, said she is ready to draft AI regulation laws and expressed hope that, just as the bipartisan-supported CHIPS and Science Act (CSA) passed Congress quickly a year ago, "AI-related bills could also pass Congress by next year."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.