FTC to hold virtual AI summit 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold a virtual summit later this month focused on ways to protect consumers and competition as the artificial intelligence (AI) field evolves, the agency announced Friday.  

The summit on Jan. 25 will include representatives from academia, industry, civil society organizations and government to discuss the state of AI and the real-world impacts of the technology.  

The event will include remarks from the three Democratic FTC commissioners. The commission has two vacant positions after the two Republican commissioners stepped down.  

It will also include three panel discussions focused on infrastructure for AI development, issues related to data and AI models, and AI-powered consumer applications, according to the FTC, which has not yet announced other event speakers.  

The FTC’s event comes as the Biden administration and Congress have been focused on weighing how to enforce existing laws and proposals for new guardrails for AI as the technology is deployed by more companies.  

FTC Chair Lina Khan has said the agency will be vigilant in monitoring risks of AI and enforcing existing laws to uphold fairness and justice as AI is used across critical sectors.