President Biden’s Artificial Intelligence Executive Order

What does the artificial intelligence executive order entail? What key provisions does the order contain to manage risks and protect Americans?

President Biden issued a sweeping executive order in October to oversee artificial intelligence technologies, establishing new guidelines for safety, security, and privacy. The order has received mixed responses from various stakeholders.

Continue reading for an overview of the order, the goals, and reactions.

AI Executive Order

President Biden recently signed a historic executive order to regulate artificial intelligence. But will this sweeping attempt to control a rapidly advancing technology mitigate risks without stifling innovation? Keep reading to learn about President Biden’s artificial intelligence executive order.

Background

The capabilities of AI systems have expanded dramatically, from language models like ChatGPT to facial recognition and autonomous vehicles. With these leaps have come growing concerns about the technology’s potential impacts on national security, civil liberties, privacy, and jobs.

President Biden’s executive order represents the US’s first comprehensive AI regulatory approach to require adherence from tech companies and federal agencies. It comes as the European Union finalizes its own comprehensive AI Act and China sets generative AI limits amid its own AI push.

Executive Order Goals and Provisions

President Biden’s executive order aims to manage emerging risks, protect Americans, and support innovation to secure America’s position as a global AI leader.

Manage emerging risks. The order sets forth testing standards and reporting requirements for AI companies and promotes the rapid development of reliable AI safety practices.

• Transparency, testing, and reporting requirements.
• Trustworthy safety practices. The order calls for clear standards and methods to detect AI-manipulated content, such as “deep fakes,” including deceptive AI-generated photo, video, and audio content that could impact election results.

Protect Americans. The EO aims to safeguard consumers, workers, and civil rights from adverse AI impacts.

• It urges Congress to prioritize privacy protection by supporting the development of technologies and methods to safeguard personal information and assessing federal agencies’ use of commercially available, personally identifiable data.
• It curbs uses of AI that might exacerbate existing inequalities.

Support innovation to secure America’s position as a global AI leader. The order represents an opportunity for the US to establish AI regulatory leadership and serve as a global model for promoting AI innovation by:

• Supporting small AI developers to bring AI innovations to the market.
• Encouraging the Federal Trade Commission to enhance competition.
• Streamlining visa procedures and evaluations to attract skilled immigrants and nonimmigrants who can help advance AI.

Stakeholder Reactions to the Order

Stakeholders across government, academia, industry, and advocacy groups say the executive order is a critical first step in AI regulation.

Supporters praise the order for addressing bias and discrimination issues.

However, some lawmakers, academics, and tech companies have concerns about the EO, including related to:

• Enforcement challenges, especially in the private sector, where Congressional action is necessary for more comprehensive control.
• Its lack of clarity in addressing certain issues.
• The fact that no established, reliable technical approach currently exists for watermarking AI-generated content. 
• Quickly recruiting AI experts into government roles.
• Fewer than 1% of AI PhD graduates enter government positions.
• The potential of the regulations to hamper American innovation and help foreign competitors if implemented poorly.

Looking Ahead

Many experts agree that the president’s executive order charts an important course for preventing real-world harm while promoting AI innovation. However, they also acknowledge challenges to its effective implementation.

Want to fast-track your learning? With Shortform, you’ll gain insights you won't find anywhere else .

Here's what you’ll get when you sign up for Shortform :

• Complicated ideas explained in simple and concise ways
• Smart analysis that connects what you’re reading to other key concepts
• Writing with zero fluff because we know how important your time is

Start your free trial today!