Balancing Innovation and Regulation in AI: Insights from Adam Billen

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Balancing Innovation and Regulation in AI: Insights from Adam Billen

Adam Billen, vice president of public policy at Encode AI, recently told us what’s wrong with the current approach to regulating artificial intelligence. He recently chatted about this changing world on an episode of our podcast Equity. He focused on striking the right balance between fostering innovation and protecting the public, safety paramount. This was underscored by the need to out-compete China. Billen highlighted the need for American policymakers to set standards and regulations that encourage innovation. Alongside that, he called on them to focus on addressing safety issues in the rapidly-changing AI landscape.

In the keynote that followed, Billen offered insight into the strategic thinking differentiating big players such as OpenAI. He implied that they could get them to stop pushing for chip export controls in order to maintain close ties with key suppliers like Nvidia. This simple policy preference is a glimpse into the battlefield that lies within the AI industry. Through supplier relationships, you can significantly inform larger regulatory strategies.

Billen articulated the urgency of the AI race with China, stating, “If the thing you care about is beating China in the race on AI — and I do care about that — then the things you would push for are stuff like export controls in Congress.” His strong statements reflect an appreciation of the geopolitical stakes at play in AI development and governance.

Additionally, he lambasted the idea that rolling back regulations created at the state level would advance American prosperity. “Killing state bills isn’t the way to go about supporting American progress,” he asserted. Billen pointed out that many AI companies lower their safety requirements when met with competitive pressure. This should create the utmost alarm about potential dangers to safety and security.

Nonetheless, Billen is optimistic for what’s to come. He’s hopeful that a federal AI bill would set a consistent national AI standard that would trump the patchwork of state laws being introduced. He hopes that this sort of move could increase ease of compliance and improve industry-wide safety. “I think SB 53 is one of the best proof points that that can still work,” he noted, referring to a specific bill that mandates transparency from large AI labs regarding their safety and security protocols.

Billen’s advocacy for SB 53 aligns with his broader belief that policy can play a crucial role in enforcing companies’ existing safety promises. He claimed that strong regulation could stop companies from taking shortcuts when faced with competitive or cost pressures. “Policy can enforce companies’ existing safety promises,” he stated, emphasizing the necessity of holding companies accountable.

Even as Billen advocates for these regulations, he’s realistic about their limitations. He commented on the potential impact of SB 53 by saying, “Are bills like SB 53 the thing that will stop us from beating China? No.” His honest admission of the steep task at hand highlights just how tricky AI policy will be to traverse in a rapidly changing technological landscape.

In discussing the state of regulatory affairs, Billen noted that many companies are already implementing practices similar to those outlined in proposed legislation. “Companies are already doing the stuff that we ask them to do in this bill,” he remarked. This indicates that more and more of the industry leaders are acknowledging this need to work within established, effective safety standards.

Billen’s perspectives shed light on how to achieve a healthy balance in regulating AI. This new approach should lead to greater innovation, but with great safety countermeasures put in place. “I think it is just genuinely intellectually dishonest to say that that is the thing that will stop us in the race,” he said, referring to oversimplified narratives surrounding regulatory impacts on progress.

As shown by the Microsoft and OpenAI revelations, lawmakers are lagging behind the rapid development of AI technologies. Voices like Billen’s provide expert perspectives about what it takes to address these challenges the right way. The debate over SB 53 underscores the important stakes for the future of AI regulation. To be sure, this debate reflects the broader, productive discussion still taking place between industry stakeholders and legislators.

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