Week of November 6, 2023
Oh how time flies! November is well underway, and we have just two weeks left before federal funding is set to run out again. Both Chambers have begun moving appropriations bills, but they face a long, uphill battle for reconciliation. Another continuing resolution to get the government through the new year seems much more likely.
After last week’s AI extravaganza with the Administration's AI EO, Majority Leader Schumer’s two AI Insight Forums, and VP Harris’ speech at the UK AI Safety Summit, movement on AI is not slowing down any time soon. Schumer is holding the fifth Insight Forum this week focusing on the use of AI in elections, and both Chambers will be holding hearings - one in Senate HSGAC on the philosophy of AI and one in the House Oversight Cyber Subcommittee to examine deepfakes.
We’re also keeping a close watch on several children’s online safety bills in the Senate, as the Judiciary Privacy Subcommittee this Tuesday will examine the correlation between social media and youth mental health.
What We’re Watching:
Schumer to Hold Fifth AI Forum on Wednesday: Senate Majority Leader Schumer is not slowing the pace of work on AI, but rather ramping up educational efforts even further as he is set to host the fifth AI Insight Forum this Wednesday with a focus on the use of AI in elections. Schumer has listed AI use in elections and campaigns as a top legislative priority which could come as soon as this year. Congress is considering the use of AI in elections shy of one year before the 2024 presidential election. The forum will likely focus on a number of considerations, including the use of deepfakes in campaign ads, how to combat AI-generated disinformation and misinformation online, the use of AI by foreign adversaries to meddle in elections, and AI cybersecurity risks in election infrastructure. A number of bills have already circulated focusing on the use of deepfakes in elections, and in September, a bipartisan group of senators introduced a bill that aims to ban the use of deceptive AI in elections.
This Week’s AI Hearings: Along with the Insight Forum on Wednesday, two committees will be holding AI hearings the same day. First up, Senate HSGAC will examine philosophical considerations of AI and bigger picture ideas about how AI is shaping the present and future. This hearing will be highly academic, with witnesses from several professors from leading universities. Later that day, the House Oversight Subcommittee on Cybersecurity will be examining advancements in deepfake technology, and how the falsified creations can be used for illicit purposes as well as how to mitigate these harms. The hearing will likely bring elections into focus, as well as other adversarial uses of the technology.
Senate Judiciary to Examine Social Media and Mental Health: In the midst of other legislative priorities, Senators are refocusing attention on children’s online privacy and addressing their concerns of online platforms and social media. On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law will be looking at the intersection between social media and mental health, in particular, teens’ mental health. The hearing is an attempt to reinvigorate support for several pieces of legislation targeting children’s online privacy, including the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA). Arturo Bejar, a former Instagram consultant, will be testifying to the Subcommittee on how Meta’s data demonstrated children’s exposure to harmful content online. Members will highlight how KOSA and other legislation will provide necessary safeguards for children online.
What’s Happening This Week:
Tech Hearings
Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on social media and mental health - Tuesday, November 7 at 10:00 AM ET
Senate HSGAC hearing on philosophy of AI - Wednesday, November 8 at 9:30 AM ET
HFSC hearing on efforts to combat terrorist financing (potentially closed) - Wednesday, November 8 at 10:00 AM ET
House Oversight subcommittee hearing on deepfake technology - Wednesday, November 8 at 2:00 PM ET
Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on PREVAIL Act - November 8 at 2:30 PM ET
Senate HELP Subcommittee hearing on health care and AI - Wednesday, November 8 at 2:30 PM ET
Tech Events
PunchBowl News - 5G leadership and spectrum policy - Tuesday, November 7 at 9:00 AM ET
The Government Executive Media Group - "Partnerships in Cybersecurity Education and Workforce Development" - Tuesday, November 7 at 1:30 PM ET
The Technology Policy Institute - "What are the Implications of the U.S. Trade Representative's Changing Position on Digital Free Trade?" - Tuesday, November 7 at 3:00 PM ET
Foreign Policy - "Promise Over Peril: The Realities and Risks of Generative AI" - Wednesday, November 8 at 10:00 AM ET
The American Bar Association - "Fall Forum," focusing on "Can Antitrust and Consumer Protection Keep Up with Artificial Intelligence?" - Thursday, November 9 at 9:00 AM ET
The Future of Privacy Forum - "key issues that arise from the use of artificial intelligence in immersive spaces," part of its "Immersive Tech Panel Series" - Thursday, November 9 at 2:00 PM ET
What’s Interesting This Week:
He Put the “X” in X-Rays…. German Physics Professor Wilhelm Röntgen created what he would later describe as “X-rays” while experimenting with electrical discharge tubes. Curious as to what was causing a faint green glow on a nearby fluorescent screen, Röntgen began systematically studying the unknown rays and published the first paper on the phenomenon less than two months later. He referred to the rays as “X”, indicating that they were an unknown form of radiation at the time. The name has stuck, although in several languages, X-rays are referred to as Röntgen rays, in tribute to his discovery. Incidentally, Röntgen was awarded the very first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901 for his work on X-rays.
