A bunch of the MAGA movement’s artificial intelligence skeptics just released some ideas on how to rein in AI companies. But their so-called solutions are ripe for authoritarian manipulation.
In an open letter to President Donald Trump, various conservative influencers and allied lawmakers, including Trump whisperer Steve Bannon and “Stop the Steal” activist Amy Kremer, expressed concerns about AI’s potential to wreak havoc on society. Bannon has counted himself among the Trump supporters concerned about the administration’s alignment with uber-rich, power-hungry tech bros, such as Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg.
Such skepticism is justified. But the letter writers’ solution to the rise of increasingly powerful AI? Not so much, in my view.
Right off the bat, the letter’s cosigners, who write under the banner of “Humans First,” shower their leader with some gushing praise utterly detached from reality:
America under your leadership has led the world through strength and wisdom, not recklessness. We urge you to continue with this, and apply that principle to artificial intelligence, taking decisive action to ensure that the most powerful AI systems in the world are properly vetted before they can threaten our national security, our children, American workers and the American way of life.
As the letter continues, the cosigners make clear they want to formalize a plan Trump has sought to implement: a requirement that the government vet AI tools before they are made available. After saying their concerns include AI-assisted bioweapons, they wrote:
For this reason, we support proposed policies that require mandatory testing, evaluation, vetting, and government approval of potentially dangerous frontier AI systems before they are deployed. This is the sort of strong, principled, and pragmatic leadership you have shown throughout your presidency.
It’s unclear what “government approval” means, exactly. I suppose it could mean “lawmakers,” and congressional involvement seems like it could be fruitful. But the letter makes no reference to Congress — or anyone other than Trump.
And that lack of clarity alone ought to raise eyebrows about this letter. After all, there’s no reason to believe that Trump — whose administration has enabled segregation and other forms of discrimination, promoted white supremacist propaganda and framed liberals as enemies of the state — has much interest in safely implementing AI tools into our society. That has seemed painfully obvious as the administration has tested powerful AI tools — some of them used by oppressive regimes — that can be used to snoop on Americans.
For what it’s worth, the White House recently was compelled to walk back its push to require AI companies to allow the administration to vet their models. After White House adviser Kevin Hassett alluded to potential regulation that would mirror the Food and Drug Administration’s reviews, backlash from the tech industry prompted a White House official to tell Politico the administration was seeking “partnership” with AI companies, rather than government regulation.
It seems even the White House is wary — or, invested in appearing wary — about assuming the kind of power that Bannon and his AI-focused allies want Trump to wield.
Ja’han Jones is an MS NOW opinion blogger. He previously wrote The ReidOut Blog.