AI oversight gap could leave a lasting legacy
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Congress has a long history of failing to regulate technology. AI is on track to be no different.
Why it matters: If the U.S. doesn't write the rules on AI, authoritarian regimes and adversaries may do it.
- Getting it wrong could mean an electorate deprived of reliable information and minors exposed to online abuse. A patchwork of state regulations could create confusion and waste. Some of this has already started to happen.
State of play: President Trump kicked off his second term by ripping up his predecessor's attempt to regulate AI, declaring that his administration would prioritize innovation over safety.
- U.S. companies have continued releasing increasingly powerful models amid fierce competition.
Those models, armed with never-before-seen capabilities to exploit cyber vulnerabilities, spooked the public and Washington.
- Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order aimed at shoring up the country's cyber defenses.
Inside the debate: Policymakers on both sides of the aisle often frame AI leadership as a matter of national security, arguing that overly restrictive regulation could result in China winning the global AI race.
- The thinking goes that speed and innovation should be prioritized.
- Critics contend that inadequate guardrails on ever more powerful models could, themselves, be a national security hazard.
What we're watching: The White House may build on its executive order over time.
- Congress, which has ceded a lot of its power to the executive branch, is unlikely to act without broader consensus within the administration and among lawmakers.
- Even if Democrats gain ground in upcoming elections, drastic policy shifts aren't guaranteed given the divisions within the party over how aggressively to regulate AI.
This story is part of an Axios Deep Dive on the policy debates shaping America's future. Read more in the series:
America's killer app: The dollar as the world's currency
The power decisions that could shape the next century
The fight over America's vaccine future
