Seventeen Senate Democrats want President Trump to treat his upcoming meeting with Xi Jinping as a brake on AI, not a gas pedal. In a letter sent Wednesday, they urged Trump to pursue a formal deal with China to slow—and possibly jointly pause—development of the most advanced artificial intelligence systems, Politico reports. Led by Sen. Chris Van Hollen, the group argues that the US and China share an interest in keeping powerful AI from causing harm, and that any guardrails they craft will likely shape global standards.
Their plea follows Trump’s UN remarks rejecting a global AI watchdog and vowing not to restrain a technology he cast as “bigger than the Industrial Revolution.” Treasury officials have floated only a modest notification system for AI issues. Democrats in top positions on the Senate committees for the armed services, foreign affairs, intelligence, and banking signed a statement Tuesday insisting that Trump close loopholes that China is using to get around US bans on exporting certain American technology to help its AI development, per the Hill.
