AI Regulation Urgently Needed: ChatGPT's CEO calls for action amid lawmakers' concerns

Washington, May 17: Sam Altman, the CEO of ChatGPT's OpenAI, testified before US lawmakers on Tuesday, emphasizing the need for regulating artificial intelligence (AI) after his poem-writing chatbot garnered global attention. The lawmakers expressed their concerns about the advancements in AI, with Senator Richard Blumenthal commencing the hearing by having a computer-generated voice, resembling his own, read a text written by the bot.

Blumenthal, a Democrat, stated, "Artificial intelligence technologies are more than just research experiments. They are no longer fantasies of science fiction; they are real and present."

Unlike the tense questioning of Facebook and TikTok executives during their visits to Washington, Altman's testimony aimed to educate lawmakers about the potential risks associated with AI. Altman urged Congress to impose new regulations on big tech, despite the political divisions that have hindered internet regulation legislation for years.

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Altman has emerged as a prominent figure in the AI field, promoting his company's technology to Microsoft and numerous other companies, while also warning about the potentially negative impacts on society.

"OpenAI was founded on the belief that artificial intelligence has the potential to improve nearly every aspect of our lives, but also that it creates serious risks," Altman stated during the hearing.

He stressed the importance of regulatory intervention by governments to mitigate the risks associated with increasingly powerful AI models, considering concerns such as disinformation and job security.

Altman proposed that the US government implement licensing and testing requirements for powerful AI models, with the authority to revoke permits if rules were violated. He also recommended labeling AI systems and fostering global coordination in establishing regulations. Additionally, he suggested creating a dedicated US agency to handle artificial intelligence.

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While Altman advocated for US leadership in AI regulation, he acknowledged the need for global cooperation. Senator Blumenthal highlighted Europe's progress with its AI Act, which is scheduled for a vote in the European Parliament next month. The EU measure could potentially include bans on biometric surveillance, emotion recognition, and certain policing AI systems.

In relation to OpenAI's generative AI systems, such as ChatGPT and DALL-E, US lawmakers emphasized the importance of transparency. They proposed categorizing these AI systems in a specific group that requires additional transparency measures, such as notifying users that the output was generated by a machine.

Despite the advancements, experts cautioned that AI technology is still in its early stages. Gary Marcus, a panelist and professor emeritus at New York University, stated, "There are more genies yet to come for more bottles. We don't have machines that can really improve themselves. We don't have machines that have self-awareness, and we might not ever want to go there."

Christina Montgomery, Chief Privacy and Trust Officer at IBM, urged lawmakers to consider the specific impacts of different AI systems when setting up regulations, highlighting the difference between a chatbot providing restaurant recommendations versus a system involved in credit, housing, or employment decisions.

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