To Regulate AI, Follow the Cfius Model

Originally published by the Wall Street Journal

Imagine if the internet had been developed in Beijing 30 years ago, and the world’s information flowed through digital architecture built by the Chinese Communist Party. Losing the artificial-intelligence race to China would be worse. No technology in our lifetime matters more to a nation’s economy and security. If the U.S. fails to lead, China will step up.

To understand AI’s national-security implications, look at Ukraine. A country without a strategic air force can lay waste to its larger adversary’s industrial base and reportedly destroy more than a third of its bomber forces. How? The Ukrainians have learned that clever use of technology, especially AI, can decide the winner of a conflict.

President Trump’s general approach to AI policy is correct. The U.S. is leading the AI race because his administration removed red tape that was strangling the industry. But Mr. Trump also recognizes the need to prevent AI from being weaponized against the homeland. Advanced models are already conducting cyberattacks. Biological, chemical and explosive weapons development could be next. Beijing’s engineers are working to steal those capabilities.

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