The US just released ten principles that it hopes will make AI safer

The White House has released ten principles for government agencies to adhere to when proposing new AI regulations for the private sector. The move is the latest development of the American AI Initiative, launched via executive order by President Trump early last year to create a national strategy for AI research and advancement. It is also part of an ongoing effort to maintain US leadership in artificial intelligence.

The principles, released by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), have three main goals: to ensure public engagement, limit regulatory overreach, and, most importantly, promote trustworthy—including fair, transparent, and safe—AI. They are intentionally broadly defined, said Lynne Parker, US deputy CTO, during a press briefing, to allow each agency to create more specific regulations tailored to its sector.

In practice, federal agencies will now be required to submit a memorandum to OSTP when proposing AI-relevant regulation to explain how it satisfies the principles. Though the office doesn’t have the authority to nix regulation, the procedure could still provide the necessary pressure and coordination to uphold a certain standard.

“OSTP is attempting to create a regulatory sieve,” says R. David Edelman, the director of the Project on Technology, the Economy, and National Security at MIT. “A process like this seems like a very reasonable attempt to build some quality control into our AI policy.”

The principles (with my translation) are:

The newly proposed plan signifies a remarkable U-turn from the White House’s stance less than two years ago when people working in the Trump administration said there was no intention of creating a national AI strategy. Instead, the administration argued then that minimizing government interference was the best way for the technology to flourish.

But as more and more governments around the world, and especially China, have heavily invested in the technology, the US has felt significant pressure to follow suit. During the press briefing, administration officials offered a new line of logic for its increased role in AI development. 

“The US AI regulatory principles provide official guidance and reduce uncertainty for innovators about how their own government is approaching the regulation of artificial intelligence technologies,” said US CTO Michael Kratsios. This will further spur innovation, he added, allowing the US to shape the future of the technology globally and counter influences from authoritarian regimes.

There are a number of ways this could play out. Done well, it would encourage agencies to hire more personnel with technical expertise, create definitions and standards for trustworthy AI, and overall lead to more thoughtful regulation. Done poorly, it could incentivize agencies to skirt around the requirements or slow down the passing of necessary regulations for ensuring trustworthy AI with additional bureaucracy.

Edelman is optimistic. “The fact that the White House pointed to trustworthy AI as a goal is very important,” he says. “It sends an important message to the agencies.”

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