The OpenAI logo is seen on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston.
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The Big Story
House panel approves ChatGPT use for some staff
The House Administration Committee approved the use of ChatGPT, the popular artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, for some staffers, the panel revealed in a new report.
The committee approved the use of ChatGPT Plus, a paid subscription plan for the chatbot, for a “cross-section” of committee staff and held an initial training on the tool, according to the report on AI strategy and implementation in the House.
“Information from this early use will help form committee-level best practices which can be shared internally,” the report noted.
The report is part of an effort by the House Administration Committee to “provide a transparent update to the public on the use of AI technology by House offices and legislative branch agencies,” it said.
ChatGPT, which was first launched by OpenAI in late 2022, quickly took off, sparking a race among major technology companies to develop and release their own publicly available AI models.
Two Senate Republicans are urging the Biden administration to investigate Temu, an online marketplace owned by a Chinese parent company. Both Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) wrote letters to the Biden administration expressing their concern about Temu and alleged that it has connections to forced labor and intellectual property theft. Cotton’s letter, dated Monday and first reported on by National Review, …
Artificial intelligence (AI) is making ransomware faster and easier to use as the online crime hits record levels, experts said at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing Tuesday. “We have tremendous concern about the future of AI and the direction it is allowing criminal actors to take, including more sophisticated deepfakes that ultimately form the first step in the chain of ransomware attacks,” said Megan Stifel, …
Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) urged the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday to consider age-verification requirements for social media ahead of the panel’s hearing on data privacy and kids’ online safety legislation. The Democratic lawmaker pointed to his legislation, the Verifying Kids’ Online Privacy Act, which would require social media to develop methods of verifying users’ ages to ensure compliance with the …
News we’ve flagged from the intersection of tech and other topics:
European data board publishes new guidance
New guidance from the European Data Protection Board will have major implications for large adtech companies, and Meta may face some of the initial impacts, TechCrunch reported.
How families who sued social media are taking action outside of courts
Families who have sued social media companies over alleged harms to their children are forming organizations and teaming up with nonprofits to pursue action as they wait on long court challenges and Congressional action, CNN reported.
On Our Radar
Upcoming news themes and events we’re watching:
Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) will hold a press conference with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Jesica Rosenworcel about the upcoming FCC vote to reinstate net neutrality protections on Thursday at 11 a.m.
In Other News
Branch out with other reads on The Hill:
Uber is helping investigators look into account that sent driver to Ohio home where she was killed
Uber is helping investigators look into an account that sent a driver to the Ohio home where an 81-year-old man allegedly shot the woman to death because he erroneously believed she was part of a scam that targeted him, the ride-hailing company said Wednesday. The March 25 shooting death of Loletha …
LONDON (AP) — Hugh Grant accepted “an enormous sum of money” to settle a lawsuit accusing The Sun tabloid of unlawfully tapping his phone, bugging his car and breaking into his home to snoop on him, the actor said Wednesday after the agreement was announced in court. Grant said he reluctantly …
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) released the legislative text Wednesday for three bills that would combine military assistance to Ukraine, Israel and … Read more
Senators quickly decided Wednesday not to hold a trial on the two articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The … Read more
