Grading the U.S. Artificial Intelligence Policy

Grading the U.S. Artificial Intelligence Policy

In a recent report titled "Analyzing U.S. Performance Across Nine Prominent AI Policy Areas", the nation's AI policy is highlighted as a driving force towards global leadership in AI. The policy aims to nurture the AI ecosystem and optimize its applications in the service of national goals and the public good.

The report evaluates the U.S.'s performance across nine prominent policies supporting AI innovation and competitiveness. These policies fall into two categories: innovation policies and legal and regulatory policies.

Innovation Policies

The report finds that the U.S. needs to innovate faster and more comprehensively than its competitors. To achieve this, the plan calls for the removal of regulatory barriers that slow private sector innovation. Federal agencies, such as the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), are encouraged to identify and repeal rules hindering AI deployment.

The plan also supports the development and adoption of open-source and open-weight AI models to benefit startups, academia, and innovation ecosystems. Federal support includes expanding AI infrastructure, increasing resources and incentives for AI research, and enabling broader private-sector data access, including for smaller AI players.

Workforce initiatives focus on AI education and training programs that develop skilled labor aligned with emerging AI roles, particularly in states cooperating with federal policy.

Legal and Regulatory Policies

The U.S. federal government pursues a deregulatory stance towards AI, aggressively rolling back existing AI regulations and conditionally linking federal funding to state-level deregulation efforts. The plan seeks to remove references to "misinformation," climate change, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) considerations from federal AI risk guidance to avoid regulatory complexities and ideological constraints.

Federal procurement standards will require that government contracts for advanced AI models come only from providers whose systems demonstrate objectivity and freedom from ideological bias in content generation. To protect national security, the plan emphasizes export controls, intellectual property protections, and screening processes against foreign adversaries exploiting U.S. AI technologies.

The plan accelerates permitting processes for AI infrastructure like data centers and semiconductor fabs to rapidly scale hardware capabilities essential for AI growth. Legal policies also propose expanding security assessments of foreign and U.S. AI capabilities and enhancing tools for national security evaluation, including biosecurity screening for malicious actors.

Summary

The report strongly endorses a U.S. policy of pro-innovation deregulation coupled with strategic national security vigilance. It recommends federal leadership in international diplomacy to set AI standards globally while securing American dominance. These measures present new challenges and opportunities for businesses to adapt compliance, investment, workforce strategies, and geopolitical risk management as the regulatory landscape shifts.

The 117th Congress, the most AI-focused congressional session in U.S. history, has seen 130 AI bills proposed in 2021 compared to just 1 in 2015. When government institutions and policies act properly, AI innovation flourishes in the U.S. However, missteps or lack of action by government entities can hinder AI innovation in the U.S. The report does not discuss the role of private firms, publicly funded national laboratories, and universities with funding from government, industry, and donors in driving AI innovation, as this was previously mentioned.

1. The report confirms the U.S. government's emphasis on artificial-intelligence (AI) research, emphasizing the need for faster innovation in this field to maintain global competitiveness.
2. Federal agencies are encouraged to eliminate regulations that hinder AI deployment, a key component of the U.S.'s AI innovation policies, as stated in the report.
3. The report suggests the adoption of open-source AI models and expansion of AI infrastructure to support startups, academia, and innovation ecosystems, as part of the nation's AI policy.
4. In terms of legal and regulatory policies, the report advocates for deregulation towards AI, a proactive approach to remove existing regulations and minimize ideological constraints.
5. The report suggests a strategic focus on national security concerns, including export controls, intellectual property protection, and screening processes against foreign adversaries in AI technology exploitation.

Read also: