An official said that on Tuesday, members of the Biden administration convened for the first time at the White House to deliberate on implementing President Biden’s executive order on artificial intelligence (AI).
The White House official said that during the meeting, the officials discussed the worldwide implications and capabilities of AI after receiving a secret intelligence briefing from the president’s national security team.
The official said that the group, which consisted of Cabinet members like Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, also deliberated on methods to recruit skilled individuals to work for the government, how to ensure the security of new AI models, and how to mitigate privacy, fraud, and discrimination concerns.
Pete Buttigieg and Jennifer Granholm were among the other attendees.
The establishment of the U.S. Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute, announced last month by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) inside the Department of Commerce, was also covered at the meeting.
The decree also included new safety requirements and procedures for submitting test findings and information to the federal government on models that might endanger public health, economic stability, or national security.
As of now, tech corporations do their own “red-teaming” of goods, testing them for possible issues such as racism or misinformation. The White House has collaborated with prominent developers on several voluntary pledges to have third parties red-team their systems before release.
But according to Biden’s executive order, the government has to establish new red-teaming standards, tools, and tests. Additionally, businesses need to inform the government and disclose the findings of red-teaming for items that potentially cause severe dangers before deploying systems. The authority to compel companies to comply originates from the Defense Production Act, a statute passed during the Korean War that amplifies presidential powers, particularly in national security matters.
According to Biden, artificial intelligence can contribute to discovering novel cancer treatments and cures. On the other hand, Zients warned that “seniors being duped by voice-cloning technologies” is one of the downsides that the White House is worried about.
While the White House has acknowledged that the Defense Production Act isn’t the only tool at the president’s disposal, officials have stressed that legislation passed by Congress is necessary for regulation.
