January 16, 2019

How Congress can help ensure US leadership in artificial intelligence

By Paul Scharre and Ainikki Riikonen

The age of artificial intelligence is upon us. AI is no longer a future technology but a present one. The AI revolution is highly global, with nations such as China playing a leading role in AI innovation. The 116th Congress has a valuable part in ensuring continued American competitiveness in AI innovation, especially human capital development and smart, sensible regulation.

The U.S. lacks a comprehensive national AI strategy. By contrast, over a dozen other nations and international organizations have published AI strategies. For example, the European Union has released its AI strategy with a focus on investing in its innovation ecosystem, developing talent, building a common data space in compliance with data principles, and developing ethics to create trust. According to the EU Commission, “the ambition is then to bring Europe’s ethical approach to the global stage.”

China, meanwhile, has emerged as a peer competitor to the United States in AI and has announced its intention to lead the world in AI by 2030, which poses a myriad of economic, human rights and security concerns. The United States lags on creating a national plan and will need to build a comprehensive AI strategy to maintain technological leadership and responsibly harness the opportunities AI presents.

Read the full article and more in The Hill.

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