How Can the US Regulate AI Without Slowing It?

TL;DR

AI regulation should prohibit harmful conduct already forbidden for people, such as providing instructions to make a bomb, without broadly restricting the mathematics and development behind AI. The United States leads China in AI technology, according to Horowitz, but its government trails China in military deployment, making collaboration between technology companies and government critical.

Transcript

joining me now Ben Horowitz and David ulich of Andres Horowitz we're here at the American dynamism conference in Washington DC it's wonderful to be here and I just want to start Ben with the fact that we are seeing uh this relationship grow between Silicon Valley and Washington case in point this conference here today how does it speak to how that'... Read More

Key Insights

• AI leadership is likely to determine which countries shape global culture and everyday life during the next century, much as early industrialization established the most influential countries of the previous century.
• The United States is ahead of China in AI technology, according to Horowitz, but the American government remains behind the Chinese government in deploying and using AI, particularly for military purposes.
• Defense technology is both a national priority and an investment opportunity because military personnel need advanced capabilities, while demand is growing across software, AI, energy, space, and communications.
• AI is a form of probabilistic computing that produces approximately correct results, allowing developers to address categories of problems that deterministic programs requiring fully predictable answers could not solve.
• AI is the first tool described in the interview as capable of fully describing a human, creating potential applications in biology that range from disease research and cures to improved diagnostics.
• Reliable energy is essential for AI data centers, electric vehicles, defense requirements, and broader electrification, while nuclear power provides continuous baseload electricity without depending on sunlight or wind.
• The United States has allowed its nuclear construction capabilities to weaken by building reactors individually rather than maintaining a steady pipeline, causing trained workers and practical expertise to disperse between projects.
• Effective AI regulation should target prohibited conduct, such as using AI to provide bomb-making instructions, without imposing broad restrictions on the underlying mathematics or preventing developers from building useful systems.

Questions & Answers

Q: How should the United States regulate AI without slowing innovation?

The United States should regulate specific harmful uses of AI rather than broadly restricting the underlying mathematics or technology. Horowitz argues that AI should not be permitted to do things people are already prohibited from doing, such as providing instructions for making a bomb. Regulation must also avoid overreacting to isolated incidents because excessive restrictions can prevent companies and government agencies from reaching the technological future needed for international competition.

Q: Is the United States or China ahead in artificial intelligence?

Horowitz says the United States is ahead of China in AI technology, a conclusion he connects to the public response after OpenAI released ChatGPT. However, he distinguishes technological leadership from government implementation. In his assessment, the American government is behind the Chinese government in deploying and using AI, particularly in a military context. Closing that gap requires stronger connections between American technology companies and government institutions.

Q: Why is collaboration between Silicon Valley and Washington important?

Collaboration is important because technological invention alone does not ensure that government and military institutions can use new capabilities effectively. Horowitz notes that Silicon Valley originally grew from defense-related work involving radar, microwave technology, and technology that eventually contributed to microprocessing. Renewing that relationship can help the United States apply its strengths in AI, energy, defense, space, and communications to national priorities and international competition.

Q: Why is venture funding increasing for defense technology?

Defense technology is attracting investment because geopolitical conditions have become more difficult and governments need stronger capabilities. Ulevitch argues that military personnel deserve the best available technology and that entrepreneurs require venture support to build it. Opportunities extend beyond weapons to software, AI, reliable energy, space systems, and communications. These areas support both the military and the broader defense industrial base as society moves further into the information age.

Q: How is AI different from traditional software?

Traditional software is described as deterministic computing, where a program follows defined instructions and is expected to reach the correct answer predictably. AI introduces nondeterministic or probabilistic computing, which can produce results that are probably approximately correct. This difference opens categories of problems that conventional programs could not address effectively, including human-computer interfaces that understand ordinary language, robotics tasks, and complex biological applications.

Q: How could AI contribute to biology and medicine?

Horowitz presents AI as a new language for understanding biology, comparing its potential role to the role calculus played in making physics more descriptive and useful. He describes AI as the first available tool capable of fully describing a human. On that basis, he expects important applications across biology, including disease cures, diagnostic methods, and other discoveries that depend on interpreting highly complex human information.

Q: Why is nuclear power important for AI development?

AI development requires data centers, and those facilities contribute to a growing demand for electricity alongside electric vehicles, defense systems, and wider electrification. Nuclear energy supplies baseload power that operates continuously without requiring sunshine or wind. It is also enduring and does not need the constant refueling required by diesel generators. These characteristics make nuclear power relevant to the reliable, resilient grid needed for an expanding information age.

Q: What role could small modular nuclear reactors play during disasters?

Small modular reactors could provide movable, dependable power where existing infrastructure is damaged or insufficient. Ulevitch describes a possible reactor small enough to transport on an 18-wheeler, similar in mobility to diesel generators used at concerts. After a hurricane or another disaster, such a reactor could be brought into a town to restore broad electricity service without the repeated refueling associated with diesel generation.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Ben Horowitz argues that leadership in AI will shape which countries influence global culture and daily life during the next century. Although the United States has strong technological capabilities, he believes its government must connect more effectively with domestic innovators, especially to deploy AI for defense and compete with China, Russia, and Iran.

• David Ulevitch describes defense technology as both an investment opportunity and a national priority. Military personnel should receive the best available tools, including advanced software, AI, resilient energy, space systems, and communications capabilities. Greater geopolitical tension and growing government needs are creating favorable conditions for founders working across the defense industrial base.

• The interview presents AI as probabilistic computing that can address problems traditional deterministic programs could not solve. It may improve human-computer interaction, robotics, biology, diagnostics, and disease research. However, these systems and expanding electrification require far more reliable energy, making nuclear power and renewed reactor-building capabilities important to the information age.