Tech CEOs, senators talk risks of AI, need for ‘safeguards’

CEOs of leading artificial intelligence (AI) companies, civil society leaders and senators met Wednesday for a closed-door discussion about the benefits and risks of the technology, as lawmakers grapple with how to put guardrails in place without stifling innovation. 

More than 60 senators attended the meeting that featured a 22-person panel including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, X owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). 

Schumer touted the attendance as an indicator of the broad, bipartisan interest in understanding and crafting regulation around AI, noting that the lawmakers recognize something must be done, legislatively speaking. 

“This was an amazing and historic experience,” Schumer told reporters, noting that everyone in the room raised their hands when asked whether government intervention is needed to play a role in regulating AI. “That gives us a message here. We have to try to act, as difficult as the process may be.”  

The conversation during Wednesday’s meeting seemed focused on broad discussions about the potential harms and benefits of the technology, without clear consensus on proposals on how to regulate AI and what agency should do so, according to comments from attendees. 

Musk, speaking to reporters following a meeting with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) after the Senate forum, said there should be “some regulatory structure” on AI. 

“Generally when there’s something which is a potential danger to the public, you want to have some public oversight,” he said. 

Zuckerberg and Pichai also said Congress has an important role to play on AI regulation, according to copies of their forum comments released by company spokespeople. 

Zuckerberg told senators that Congress “should engage with AI to support innovation and safeguards.”

“This is an emerging technology, there are important equities to balance here, and the government is ultimately responsible for that,” he said. 

Universally, senators described the forum as a useful experience as they struggle to wrap their arms around the emerging subject at hand. A number of lawmakers noted that the issue is far from their wheelhouse and that they must learn quickly in order to implement legislative guardrails that almost everyone in attendance acknowledged they need. 

“It is a huge topic. I don’t pretend to understand it,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (Mich.), the No. 3 Senate Democrat, told reporters. “I come from an auto state. I know what autonomous vehicles means, but I can’t begin to tell you what we’re looking at here, from national security, economic and so on.”

“It’s a big subject,” she continued. “It’s the future, and we better be the leaders.”

Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) said it was a “true learning experience” and touted the array of panelists. 

“I call it Schumer University,” he said.

One area of agreement in the room was on the need for American leadership on AI, said Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska). There was also a focus on issues related to protecting national security, he said. 

“Ten years ago, I think a lot of these tech companies had an aversion to working with the Pentagon. … That’s changing. I think that’s helpful for the national security of our country,” he said. 

Wednesday’s AI Insight Forum was part of Schumer’s plan, put forward in June along with a broad framework for regulation, for how the Senate will consider AI regulation. In the three months since, though, other senators pushed forward more specific regulatory proposals on AI.

Last week, Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) released a proposal for AI regulation that would require AI companies to apply for licensing and clarify that a tech liability shield would not protect AI companies from lawsuits. On Tuesday, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Hawley, Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) released a proposal aimed at banning the use of deceptive AI-generated content in political ads.

And the forum took place one day after the Senate Commerce and Judiciary committees held hearings about AI.

Schumer said there will be many ideas proposed by senators on AI regulation. He said the goal for him and the bipartisan group he assembled, which also includes Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), is to put together a “comprehensive plan” that aims to incorporate those ideas, and more importantly, be able to pass. 

“That’s our job. If you go too fast, you can ruin things,” he said. 

Schumer declined to identify a detailed timeline for a regulatory proposal, but said the goal is to aim for something months away rather than years. 

Mychael Schnell contributed.