The United States begins the impossible: setting the limits of AI

President Joe Biden released the first national security memorandum on artificial intelligence on Thursday, which details the objectives of how the government should work with cutting-edge AI technologies, while advancing international consensus around this controversial technology.

Since OpenAI launched its artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT in 2022, AI has been a hot topic, with people both for and against it. Unfortunately, its dangers outweigh its capabilities to do good.

So it is not surprising that the American government is trying to establish a rulebook for the use of the powerful new technology to better serve national interests while putting critical barriers in place.

New: Biden has issued a National Security Memorandum to guide natsec agencies' use of AI, shape global AI standards, & win the AI competition with China: https://t.co/I05uf9Rrgw

Highlights include prioritizing intel collection on foreign govt efforts to undermine U.S. AI firms. pic.twitter.com/t9TiWmQ6xZ

— Eric Geller (@ericgeller) October 24, 2024

Does this effort make sense right before the elections?

The document contains about 38 pages unclassified, with a classified appendix, according to The New York Times. Some of its statements are obvious, notes The Times. For example, it states that AI systems should never be able to make decisions about the use of nuclear weapons.

Of course, Biden is not running for re-election, and his term ends in January. It is not clear how or if the new president will follow the same policy outlined in the document.

The document warns that the U.S., which has been a global leader in artificial intelligence, cannot take its advantage for granted.

“We are all familiar with past cases where we saw critical technologies and supply chains that were developed and commercialized here in the U.S. migrate overseas due to a lack of critical support from the public sector,” the document partly states. “That’s why we are focused on maintaining the strongest AI ecosystem in the world here in the United States.”

The memorandum tasks the National Economic Council with “coordinating an economic assessment of the relative competitive advantage of the U.S. private sector AI ecosystem.” It also notes that the country will need to maintain its advantage by investing in semiconductors, infrastructure, and clean energy.

The memorandum states that U.S. efforts in AI must be guided by the “critical guardrails” established in 2023 by Biden’s executive order on safe, secure, and trustworthy artificial intelligence.