U.S. Sens. Todd Young (R-IN) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) recently introduced a bipartisan bill that would provide artificial intelligence (AI) researchers and students with greater access to the resources, data, and tools they need to develop safe and trustworthy AI.
The Creating Resources for Every American To Experiment with Artificial Intelligence Act of 2023, or the CREATE AI Act of 2023, S. 2714, which U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) sponsored on July 27 with original cosponsors Sen. Young and Sen. Rounds, would establish the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) as a shared national research infrastructure to provide such resources.
“Artificial intelligence is already integrated into nearly every facet of our lives. Recent major leaps in innovation provide great promise, but also have caused some to highlight potential risks to society,” Sen. Young said. “The United States cannot cede leadership in AI development, and we must harness the great potential the technology offers in order to reap its benefits and combat any potential risks.”
Sen. Young added that S. 2714 would “democratize AI safety research and serve as a testbed for the development and implementation of innovative AI practices.”
“Artificial intelligence has the potential to impact a range of fields, from national security to health care,” Sen. Rounds said. “Universities in South Dakota are already conducting research and applying AI and other emerging technologies. This legislation will allow these universities to expand their leading role.”
S. 2714 has four goals, according to the lawmakers. The bill aims to:
- Spur innovation and advance the development of safe, reliable, and trustworthy AI research and development.
- Improve access to AI resources for researchers and students, including groups typically underrepresented in STEM.
- Improve capacity for AI research in the United States.
- Support the testing, benchmarking, and evaluation of AI systems developed and deployed in the United States.
If enacted, the NAIRR would provide computational resources, including an open-source software environment and a programming interface providing structured access to AI models; data, including curated datasets of user interest and an AI data commons; educational tools and services; and AI testbeds, including a catalog of open AI testbeds and a collaborative project with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
The bill is supported by Indiana University, TechNet, the National Science Foundation, the Information Technology Industry Council, the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, Anthropic, and SeedAI.
“We know that AI will be enormously consequential. If we develop and deploy this technology responsibly, it can help us augment our human creativity and make major scientific advances, while also preparing American workers for the jobs of the future,” said Sen. Heinrich. “If we don’t, it could threaten our national security, intellectual property, and civil rights.”