The White House isn’t letting Congress have all the AI-regulating fun—last week it announced a slew of initiatives, including a discussion with workers and other stakeholders about how employers use automation to monitor them and seeking public comment on how to use AI for the greater good.
Meanwhile, the House wants to cool China’s lead on drone-making, and the Environmental Protection Agency is deciding whether California can move forward with an ambitious plan to cut vehicle emissions. Here’s our dispatch from last week’s intersection of tech and politics:
Input on AI: Like everyone else, the Biden administration is focused on artificial intelligence, and last week announced several initiatives aimed at managing the risks of that technology, including hosting a listening session to hear about out how AI is being used for employee surveillance and monitoring, and updating the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s (OSTP) National AI R&D Strategic Plan.
The OSTP also put out a request for comment on “critical AI issues,” seeking input from the public on “national priorities for mitigating AI risks, protecting individuals’ rights and safety, and harnessing AI to improve lives.” The request includes 29 questions such as, “How can AI be used to strengthen civic engagement and improve interactions between people and their government?” and “How can AI rapidly identify cyber vulnerabilities in existing critical infrastructure systems and accelerate addressing them?”
Finally, the Department of Education released a new report outlining issues and providing recommendations regarding the use of AI in learning in order to “realize key opportunities, prevent and mitigate emergent risks, and tackle unintended consequences.”
Eye in the sky: The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology approved the National Drone and Advanced Air Mobility Research and Development Act, which is aimed at giving US drone development a boost. The bill, which was introduced by Oklahoma Republican Frank Lucas, calls for an interagency working group to develop a plan to enhance domestic research into the areas of unmanned aircraft services (UAS) and advanced air mobility (AAM). It would also seek to limit domestic use of foreign-made drones.
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According to a committee fact sheet, 90% of drones used for public safety in the US and close to 80% of those used for recreation are produced by Chinese maker DJI.
“To say China has cornered this market is an understatement,” Lucas said in a statement. “This bill will develop strong, safe, and secure domestic UAS and AAM industries that will grow our economy and counter foreign threats.” The bill now awaits a vote in the full House.
Permission to go green: California is asking the EPA to OK a plan requiring that, by 2035, all new vehicles sold in the Golden State be electric or hybrid, per Reuters. The California Air Resources Board approved the plan last summer and turned to the federal agency last week to seek a waiver under the Clean Air Act. According to Reuters, California predicts its new rule would cut smog-causing pollution from light-duty vehicles in the state by 25% by 2037.
In April, the EPA proposed emissions cuts that it estimates will result in 67% of new cars in the country being electric by 2032. The EPA must approve California’s plan before it can take effect.