Former Democrat presidential candidate Andrew Yang, now a member of the Forward Party, has warned that artificial intelligence could “destroy” America.
Speaking on Fox Business Network’s “Cavuto: Coast to Coast” last week, he was asked by host Neil Cavuto specifically about remarks billionaire Elon Musk recently made about the risks that AI technology ultimately poses to humans.
In speaking about the risks, Musk added that there should be a six-month minimum pause on AI technology for the sake of safety. Yang agreed with this.
“I think he’s right to be cautious and concerned. We all should be concerned. I was talking to my friend about this, and she said, hey, what’s the worst that could happen? And I said, well, unwarranted military conflict, mass identity theft, spoofing of people by voices of their loved ones giving them a call,” he told Cavuto.
“I mean, all of these things are now on the table. Science fiction type scenarios are here with us and the incentives for these tech companies are to go as fast as possible because you’re in a bit of a race. And in that kind of context, bad things are likely to happen, so I think Elon’s spot-on for calling for a pause,” he added.
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Cavuto then pushed the discussion ahead by asking about the potential benefits of AI and also about the government getting involved with it.
Yang replied by acknowledging some of the potential benefits of AI but also again stressing the extreme danger it poses. He also noted that objectively speaking, the U.S. government is way behind when it comes to AI.
“Well, it could have some very positive effects. I talked to a company that was making headway on helping find a cure or something that can help people with Alzheimer’s and ALS. I mean, that would be tremendous for humanity. So AI can be a force for civilizational progress, but it can also destroy us at the high end. So you’d want a tailored approach,” he said.
“You’d want an AI-dedicated body that actually understands the pluses and minuses and the different use cases of AI. And that’s something we don’t have because our government is decades behind this curve. We were getting away with our government being behind on technology for a long time, but now it’s getting more and more dangerous,” he added.
Speaking of government, last week a number of Democrat and Republican members of Congress admitted to Fox News that they don’t know much about AI and that the government isn’t really prepared yet to tackle it.
‘AI can kill us’ but lawmakers in charge of regulation are unprepared ‘intellectually and resource-wise’: report https://t.co/6d1s6JKeVg pic.twitter.com/aNCIhDL0t1
— Conservative News (@BIZPACReview) April 22, 2023
“As a recovering computer science major, my understanding of AI on a scale of 1 to 10 is about a 5. There’s a lot I don’t know. There’s a lot the American people don’t know. And that’s why I think we should pass a bill I’m working on to have a panel of experts to give recommendations to the American people and to Congress on what types of AI we should regulate, and how we might go about doing so,” Rep. Ted Lieu, a Democrat, said.
Rep. Nancy Mace, a Republican who considers herself a bit of a computer expert, added that part of the problem is that so few in Congress even know how to use computers correctly.
“You have members of Congress who don’t know how to log into Zoom and Facebook, and so to have these kinds of really important debates about technology and our vulnerabilities, you want people to be able to understand what the technology is and what it isn’t,” she said.
Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat, kept it even blunter: “I don’t think Congress is prepared intellectually and resource-wise [to handle AI],” he said.
“I don’t want to say Congress knows nothing. Staff has been going to briefings on AI. But AI has the potential to touch any number of sectors. There may be some overblown panic being created, but there’s no doubt that AI is going to be highly consequential,” he added.
According to Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat, it’s going to be imperative for Democrats and Republicans alike to “learn from people in the field.”
“I don’t think anyone here in Congress is an artificial intelligence expert. I think we gotta learn from people in the field, listen to the experts, and analyze. And so I’m sure we’re going to do a lot more information gathering here over the next couple of years,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rep. Cynthia Lummis, a Republican, called for billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk to educate Congress about AI.
“We need experts like Elon Musk to help us dive through the capabilities and their potential misuses. We’ve got a long way to go before we have any sense of its true capabilities and understanding what people like Elon Musk see as its capabilities going forward,” she said.
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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