Microsoft Calls on The US to Create An Agency to Regulate AI

Microsoft has called on the US federal government to create a new agency that will regulate artificial intelligence. 

Speaking in Washington to members of Congress and non-governmental organizations, Microsoft Vice Chairman and President Brad Smith noted that “the rule of law and commitment to democracy keep technology in its proper place” and should do so again in the case of artificial intelligence. Another part of Microsoft’s “plan” to regulate AI calls for the mandatory installation of back-up AI circuit breakers – fuses that will allow algorithms to shut down quickly.

Smith also strongly recommended that President Biden draft and sign an executive order requiring all federal agencies that work with LI tools to adhere to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) risk management system. He added that

Microsoft will also comply NIST guidelines and will publish an annual report on AI to ensure transparency.

Except that Smith expressed his apprehension, his hour-long speech as well gave him an opportunity to praise the latest advances in AI. He compared it meaning with a printing press or electricity. In an accompanying blog post echoing his speech, Smith even said, “AI offers perhaps even greater potential for the good of humanity than any invention that has come before it.”