[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 104 (Wednesday, June 14, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S2079]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Artificial Intelligence

  Mr. SCHUMER. Yesterday, Mr. President, I joined with many colleagues 
from both sides of the aisle for the first of a series of all-Senate 
briefings solely dedicated to the subject of AI. Yesterday's AI 
briefing was a huge success. We had a really strong turnout from both 
parties. It was an important moment for everyone to get into a room and 
build a foundation of knowledge on this pressing issue.
  If I had to describe our mindset leaving yesterday's briefing, it was 
a mix of urgency and humility: urgency because AI is developing so damn 
fast and humility because AI is stupendously complex.
  Congress has only a limited amount of time to stay proactive on 
artificial intelligence, and I think yesterday's briefing made that 
clear. The potential societal benefits from AI are astounding--from 
medical advances and innovative materials to fusion energy and so much 
more.
  But we also must recognize that AI poses monstrously complex 
challenges. Even top AI developers will admit they don't have a firm 
grip on how this technology works now and even less of a grip on how it 
will work in the future.
  One of the topics that has come up in my discussions with experts is 
``explainability,'' or the challenge of making AI's ``black box'' inner 
workings understandable. Even this is no trivial matter. It is a 
cutting-edge technological research question, and it will require 
immense cooperation between legislators, developers, researchers, 
academics, and advocates to strike the right balance.
  I hope all of my colleagues join for the next two AI briefings the 
next work period. We will examine where this technology is headed in 
the near future and get briefed in the SCIF on national security 
threats that AI already poses.
  Again, thank you to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who are 
already getting to work on this issue both on their own and in 
committee. The range of proposals show the Senate is taking this matter 
seriously. Thank you, again, to Senators Rounds, Heinrich, and Young 
for making these briefings possible.