[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 104 (Wednesday, June 14, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S2089]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Artificial Intelligence

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, yesterday, the Judiciary Committee's 
Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law hosted a hearing to examine 
the rise of artificial intelligence. In the last few months, we have 
had a lot of conversations here about AI, and I am grateful that we are 
looking at this issue. Although there are many areas where we disagree, 
our colleagues on each side of the aisle are paying close attention to 
this issue. I would encourage my colleagues to review the high points 
of yesterday's hearing because it truly demonstrated the scope of the 
challenges that we find ourselves facing.
  We fielded several firsthand accounts of how this technology can be 
weaponized against human beings in our homes and on a national scale. 
We heard from Jennifer DeStefano, who was the victim of an attempted AI 
kidnapping and extortion scheme. Scam artists used AI to clone her 15-
year-old daughter Brie's voice and then used this manufactured 
recording to try and extort $1 million in ransom.
  Fortunately, Jennifer was able to confirm that Brie was safe. But you 
can see how criminals could, and indeed will, and certainly are 
beginning to leverage this technology against other families.
  We also heard from Jeffrey Cain, an investigative journalist who has 
witnessed how destructive AI can be in the hands of oppressive 
governments. He has reported extensively on how the Chinese Communist 
Party is using AI to enhance their brutal surveillance state.
  According to one account, the CCP has used facial recognition to 
track the movements of Chinese citizens. They have even used it to 
track their citizens as young as 9 days old. This is how the Chinese 
Communist Party is using this technology.
  One of the things that we have learned is that China and the CCP are 
trying to control the market for artificial intelligence, just the same 
that we have learned they are doing for 5G, for quantum computing, and 
for other groundbreaking technologies.
  They said as much back in 2017, when they released their national AI 
development plan. Their goal is to be the dominant force in artificial 
intelligence by the time we reach 2030.
  But whether we are talking about the threat from scam artists or 
hostile foreign powers, it is time to prove that the U.S. Senate 
understands why we must lead in setting the standards for and 
developing artificial intelligence, rather than ceding this authority 
and this place to Xi Jinpin and the Chinese Communist Party.
  That means continuing the work that we started in yesterday's 
hearing. It is important to note this was a bipartisan hearing. 
Chairman Ossoff did a great job in leading this discussion. We had 
great participation in this hearing.
  And we have to continue to look at the uses of artificial 
intelligence. There are some for good, and there are some for evil, 
which is what we heard so much about yesterday and how it impacts human 
rights.
  As we think about deploying AI on a broad scale, we need to focus on 
preserving the freedoms and the democratic values that we hold dear 
here in our country. It also means finally enacting a national data 
privacy standard to govern the collection and the sharing of our 
personal information.
  One of our witnesses, Alexandra Givens, mentioned that this needed to 
be done as a fundamental foundational element before we begin to look 
at guardrails for AI, giving individuals the ability to protect their 
virtual views themselves and their information in the virtual space.
  This is something that, as policymakers, we need to make sure that 
our existing laws can adapt to meet the challenge that is before us as 
we look at artificial intelligence.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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