Karl Herchenroeder

The U.S. should recruit global talent to ensure it keeps its advantage with artificial intelligence technology, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI) Chairman Eric Schmidt told the House Intelligence and Emerging Threats Subcommittee on Thursday. Chairman James Langevin, D-R.I., questioned whether limitations on foreigners studying in the U.S. plays into China’s hands, since workforce talent determines a country’s AI development. Many Chinese graduate students are responsible or partly responsible for the top academic papers on AI, Schmidt said. He recommended recruiting top talent from all countries and working to keep them in the U.S., producing research and helping create defense companies: “I’d much rather have them creating successes in America.” Responding to Langevin about AI investment, Schmidt said the U.S. isn’t overinvested in anything AI-related but underinvested in underlying infrastructure. NSCAI Commissioner Mignon Clyburn noted the commission’s first-quarter recommendations are filled with opportunities for the federal government to embrace AI as a “way of life, a way of your job” and a national strategic priority. Rep. Elisa Slotkin, D-Mich., asked about a structural change to ensure these recommendations and innovation are incorporated. NSCAI Vice Chairman Robert Work noted the commission recommended a technological steering group with intelligence and defense officials to examine how to integrate technology for the military’s advantage. Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Md., drew attention to the report’s recognition that AI needs to account for racial diversity, citing his concerns about bias. AI algorithms need to be built by design to avoid racial bias issues, said NSCAI Commissioner Jose-Marie Griffiths. She recommended R&D for algorithm development.

Trademark modernization takes legislative priority over efforts to update the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee Chairman Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told us Wednesday before a hearing on the DMCA. The Trademark Modernization Act recently passed the House Judiciary Committee unanimously. Getting that bill enacted into law this Congress is one of Tillis' “top priorities,” his office said. “We’ll be working with them to make sure that whatever we lay down has got consensus,” the lead Senate sponsor said.

Google has unprecedented control over the digital advertising market, which threatens news publishers and gives the platform unrivaled leverage, Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans and Democrats said at an Antitrust Subcommittee hearing Tuesday.

Congress should be cautious about creating new antitrust regulations, FTC Chairman Joe Simons and DOJ Antitrust Division Chief Makan Delrahim said Monday. “Some are proposing regulatory solutions designed to curb or change the way” tech companies compete, Simons told a virtual International Competition Network conference. “I would advise strong caution before adopting any type of a regulatory regime rather than relying on a competition regime.”

Groups are scrambling to get the Music Modernization Act’s music licensing collective ready to issue licenses by January (see 2004220055). The timeline between the MMA’s October 2018 passage and January is tight, Mechanical Licensing Collective Board Member Danielle Aguirre told a George Mason University panel Wednesday. Validating copyright ownership data has been a big push for the MLC over the past six months, she said: Copyright owners are being asked to take a more active role in “identifying their works,” cleaning up data and working with the MLC to make sure it’s correct. The MLC will be better if songwriters do their part to get the data correct, said Songwriters of North America founding member Adam Gorgoni. He noted if there’s a conflict and copyright owners participate in sorting out those differences, “theoretically, everyone will get paid what they deserve, and that’s our goal.” SONA will continue its due diligence to ensure songwriters are “treated fairly” and when there are disagreements, “we’re going to fight,” he said. Spotify Global Head-Publisher Operations Lisa Selden noted time's tight. The biggest challenge is getting the final regulations from the Copyright Office, testing the work with the MLC and having it ready for licensing, she said. CO General Counsel Regan Smith welcomed comments in ongoing proceedings regarding the MMA, noting the proposed rule on transparency and additional disclosure.

Legislation discouraging social media fact-checking and First Amendment rights is the wrong approach, said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks Wednesday. They discussed Republican proposals on Communications Decency Act Section 230.

If Joe Biden wins the November election, expect Democrats to pursue antitrust law changes that would raise the bar for acquisitions, experts said in recent interviews. President Donald Trump has shown more interest in politically driven attacks than serious policy work, they said.

Adopt NTIA’s petition for rulemaking on Communications Decency Act Section 230, Republican state attorneys general commented to the FCC posted Thursday in RM-11862 (see 2009020064). Tech, telecom and consumer groups again largely said the FCC shouldn't consider the petition, saying the FCC and NTIA are exceeding their jurisdiction and expertise. The AG group was formed by Texas’ Ken Paxton, Indiana’s Curtis Hill, Louisiana’s Jeff Landy and Missouri’s Eric Schmitt. The petition clarifies 230's scope and empowers states without undermining protections for moderation of “traditionally regulated content,” they wrote: It promotes freedom of speech by “ensuring competition through transparency.”

Reject NTIA’s petition for a rulemaking on Communications Decency Act Section 230, tech, telecom and consumers groups told the FCC in comments posted Wednesday before the midnight deadline in RM-11862 (see 2008120050). The petition has no legal basis, the agency doesn’t have jurisdiction, and President Donald Trump is attempting to use the commission for political gain, they said. AT&T called for uniform liability protections.

NTIA’s petition for an FCC rulemaking on Communications Decency Act Section 230 “lacks a legitimate legal basis” and would “cause serious harm to company moderation efforts,” Internet Association Deputy General Counsel Elizabeth Banker told reporters Tuesday (see 2008120050). Content moderation protects consumers, and reasonable people want platforms to take action like “removing promotion of suicide, plans for bombs and other dangerous materials, or 419 scams,” she said. The FCC lacks “authority to implement this rule under both First Amendment case law and administrative law precedent,” she added. Comments on the petition are due Wednesday.