OpenAI unveils AI regulation plan, calling on US authorities to invest billions

OpenAI has published an economic roadmap for artificial intelligence (AI), proposing steps to ensure the technology’s success in the United States. The document calls for active collaboration between OpenAI, the US government and its allies, and the need to attract billions of dollars in investment in AI development, including chips, energy and qualified personnel.

Image Source: Levart Photographer / Unsplash

According to TechCrunch, OpenAI has repeatedly called on the government to take more active action in the field of AI and infrastructure to maintain US global leadership in this area. The company considers the current state of affairs unacceptable, where regulation in AI is largely left to the states, which often leads to contradictory and ineffective measures. For example, in 2024, state legislators introduced nearly 700 bills related to AI, many of which contradict each other.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also criticized existing federal laws, such as the CHIPS and Science Act, aimed at reviving the US semiconductor industry. In his opinion, this law did not achieve the expected effectiveness, and the Donald Trump administration could take more effective measures. “I deeply agree with Trump that it has become very difficult to build anything in the United States,” Altman said. – Power plants, data centers, whatever. I understand that the bureaucracy is growing and this does not help the country as a whole. This is especially harmful to AI, given that the US is leading and should continue to lead in this area.”

To support the data centers needed for the development and use of AI, OpenAI proposes a global increase in federal spending on electricity and data centers, as well as the development of new energy sources such as solar, wind and nuclear. It is worth saying that OpenAI and its AI competitors have previously expressed support for nuclear energy projects, considering them necessary to meet the energy needs of next-generation server farms.

In the short term, OpenAI proposes that the government develop a regulatory framework for the deployment of AI models to protect against abuse, streamline the AI ​​industry’s interactions with national security agencies, and develop export controls that would allow “AI models to be shared with allies but limited to their export.” to unfriendly countries.” The document also calls on the government to share national security information with vendors, including briefings on threats to the industry, and to help provide resources to assess the risks associated with certain AI models.

The roadmap also addresses the issue of copyright. The company argues that AI developers should be able to freely use public information, including copyrighted content, to train models. OpenAI emphasizes that other countries do not respect intellectual property rights, and unless the US takes reasonable steps, this content will still be used to train models in other countries. As such, OpenAI is calling on the government to enable such training while protecting creators from unauthorized digital copying.

In turn, OpenAI Vice President for Global Affairs Chris Lehane emphasized the need to attract investment. “Today, as some countries put AI and its economic potential on the back burner, the U.S. government can lead the way to advance the AI ​​industry to ensure the country maintains its global leadership in innovation while protecting national security,” Lehane said.

It is not yet clear which OpenAI proposals will be taken into account by legislators. However, the roadmap shows that the company intends to play a key role in shaping a unified US government policy on artificial intelligence, seeking to create a voluntary mechanism for AI companies to interact with the government to set security standards and exchange information.