AI comes to Capitol Hill

It’s AI week on Capitol Hill and Congress is reckoning with how to control the quickly emerging technology with a series of meetings and oversight hearings with AI heavyweights.

Those testifying include Microsoft’s President Brad Smith and the chief scientist of Nvidia – two companies that have been at the forefront of the AI boom. On Wednesday, Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and X’s Elon Musk will meet behind closed doors with Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer.

All this comes after the subcommittee released a draft of a bipartisan framework for AI regulation last week. The proposal would require that companies register with an independent oversight board and exclude AI companies from Section 230 – an act which shields tech companies from being responsible for third-party content.

Microsoft’s president told senators at Tuesday’s hearing that he supports an independent regulator for AI that prioritizes safety and national security.

This week’s hearings are part of a larger push in Washington to craft regulation that mitigates AI’s dangers while safeguarding innovation. Lawmakers want the AI industry to play by their rules, they just don’t know what the rules are yet.