The time for regulating AI is now, according to Biden’s top tech adviser.
Key takeaways: Arati Prabhakar, director of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), views AI as a pressing issue with both promising and concerning implications:
- As the president’s chief science and tech adviser, Prabhakar is helping guide the White House’s approach to AI safety and regulation, including Biden’s executive order from last fall.
- While excited about AI’s potential to accelerate progress in areas like health, climate, and public missions, Prabhakar stresses the need to manage AI’s risks in order to harness its benefits.
- She highlights the breadth of AI applications, each with a “bright side and a dark side,” necessitating a nuanced approach to governance that goes beyond simply corralling core technologies.
The evolving role of federal R&D: Prabhakar discusses the historical pendulum swing between public and private sector R&D investment and its impact on innovation:
- Federal R&D plays a critical role in supporting public missions, laying the foundation for private sector growth, and educating students, even as private investment has surpassed public funding in recent decades.
- Prabhakar emphasizes the importance of maintaining robust federal R&D to address new challenges and aspirations in areas like national security, economic opportunity, and climate change.
Navigating AI governance challenges: The OSTP director delves into the complexities of regulating AI technologies while upholding fundamental values:
- Prabhakar frames AI governance as a systems problem requiring action from government, companies, and civil society to mitigate risks and accelerate responsible development.
- She highlights the tension between protecting free speech and preventing AI-enabled harms like deepfakes and online harassment, noting the need for legislative action and industry cooperation.
- Prabhakar also discusses the unresolved legal questions around intellectual property rights and fair use in the context of AI training data.
Revitalizing the semiconductor industry: Reflecting on her background in semiconductor research, Prabhakar shares insights on the CHIPS Act and efforts to secure US leadership in chip manufacturing:
- The $52 billion CHIPS Act aims to bring leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing back to the US, reducing supply chain vulnerabilities and creating domestic jobs.
- Prabhakar highlights the strategic importance of coupling manufacturing capacity with sustained R&D investments to ensure long-term competitiveness in the semiconductor industry.
Looking ahead: As the OSTP works to nurture America’s innovation ecosystem, Prabhakar identifies emerging areas with transformative potential:
- Beyond the ongoing biological revolution, she points to advancements in the social sciences, powered by data and AI, as a frontier with significant implications for understanding individual and societal behaviors.
- Prabhakar emphasizes the need to anticipate and navigate the bright and dark sides of these emerging capabilities to build a better future.
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...