The pace of artificial intelligence (AI) development is causing a rift in U.S. politics.
President Donald Trump has drawn a line against the idea of slowing down AI progress, warning that it could leave the U.S. lagging behind China. In contrast, former President Barack Obama has called on the Democratic Party to establish clear AI policies and regulatory frameworks, citing the rapid advancement of AI in the private sector.
Recently, the U.S. AI industry has issued warnings that the accelerated pace of AI development could pose a threat to humanity. While Trump dismissed these concerns as unfounded, Obama has stepped in to advocate for more regulation.
AI Companies Push for Development Slowdown; Trump Insists U.S. Must Outpace China
According to the Financial Times and other news outlets on Monday, Dario Amodei, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of an AI company, published an article titled, We Must Pace the Frontier, arguing that AI firms should decelerate the enhancement of their models.
He proposed external evaluations for leading AI companies, the establishment of industry safety standards, and coordination of regulations between nations.
Sam Altman, CEO of competitor OpenAI, expressed agreement, stating that he concurs with Amodei’s assertion that it needs to pace the frontier. Elon Musk also affirmed that Amodei is right.
Leaders of major companies driving AI development have publicly acknowledged the need to slow down their progress.
Recently, the warnings surrounding AI safety have intensified.
Evan Hubinger, the AI alignment research lead at Anthropic, stated that he genuinely believes that AI could potentially eradicate humanity, estimating the likelihood of such an event occurring within the next decade at over 10%.
Paul Cristiano, an AI alignment researcher who joined the OpenAI board, pointed out that the current trajectory of the AI industry does not adequately mitigate the risk of catastrophic loss of control to acceptable levels.
However, President Trump has rejected calls from the AI industry to slow down development.
On September 13, while visiting the Doonbeg Golf Course in Ireland, Trump told reporters that they’re ahead of China in AI, and frankly, it wants to maintain that position, adding that the winner in AI wins everything.
Regarding AI risks, he acknowledged that safety measures could be implemented but criticized those raising concerns as negative forces bringing up hypothetical scenarios.
House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed this sentiment on CNN, stating that it cannot impose a moratorium. If it does, China will overtake them, emphasizing that this is a national security issue.
David Sachs, former head of AI and cryptocurrency under the Trump administration, remarked to AI companies taht if you want to slow the frontier, you can do that. You are setting the pace. He argued that government regulation to limit development speed is unnecessary.
In a June executive order, the Trump administration stated that the U.S. leads in AI because it has not stifled innovation with excessive regulations. They clarified that while they are establishing a government evaluation system for frontier AI, it will not operate as a mandatory government approval or pre-approval system.
Obama: AI Should Be a Central Agenda for Democrats; A Clear Plan is Necessary
Meanwhile, the opposition Democratic Party believes it needs to establish a regulatory framework that keeps pace with AI development.
During an informal Democratic fundraising event in New York last week, former President Obama urged that AI should be one of the party’s central agendas.
He highlighted the rapid advancements of AI in the private sector and stressed the need for Democrats to prepare a comprehensive plan addressing the economic impact and safety issues of AI.
Notably, it has been suggested that if Democrats regain the House majority in the upcoming midterm elections, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries should spearhead public discussions on AI policy.
Senator Ruben Gallego stated that the U.S. should not delay AI regulations out of fear of falling behind China. Senator Jon Ossoff also called for government inspections and related legislation for frontier AI research institutions.