At the Pro-Human Assembly in Washington, organized by the Future of Life Institute, political figures including Bernie Sanders and Steve Bannon advocated for stricter AI regulation. The event gathered a diverse coalition of politicians, religious leaders, and artists to discuss the risks associated with rapid technological development.
Legislative proposals are currently under discussion. Bernie Sanders introduced a bill to pause the construction of data centers and suggested international agreements to prohibit superintelligent AI. Meanwhile, Steve Bannon expressed a preference for executive orders over traditional legislation to curb the influence of tech companies.
OpenAI has officially backed a provision within the FRONTIER Act, sponsored by Jay Obernolte and Lori Trahan. This bill aims to establish a federal framework for AI safety, requiring leading laboratories to undergo independent verification by third-party organizations.
The mandate for independent audits would apply specifically to companies that exceed certain revenue and compute thresholds. This marks the first instance of OpenAI supporting a concrete federal mandate for external safety oversight, following previous voluntary commitments made by CEO Sam Altman.
