VP Kamala Harris Crowned as AI Czar under Biden’s New Cyber-Safety Action Plans
This move appears to be the first step in publicly transitioning Harris into a more robust executive role.
In a scramble to remain relevant and to seem actually engaged with current events, the Biden White House recently met with Big Tech executives to discuss artificial intelligence (AI) amid burgeoning concerns about how chatbots impact privacy, information exchanges, employment, and fears that advanced technology may possibly replace humans someday.
For roughly two hours in the White House’s Roosevelt Room, Vice President Kamala Harris and other officials told the leaders of Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, the maker of the popular ChatGPT chatbot, and Anthropic, an A.I. start-up, to seriously consider concerns about the technology . . . . Biden also briefly stopped by the meeting.
“What you’re doing has enormous potential and enormous danger,” Mr. Biden told the executives.
It was the first White House gathering of major A.I. chief executives since the release of tools like ChatGPT, which have captivated the public and supercharged a race to dominate the technology.
“The private sector has an ethical, moral and legal responsibility to ensure the safety and security of their products,” Ms. Harris said in a statement. “And every company must comply with existing laws to protect the American people.”
The administrations cyber-safety action plans include naming Harris as AI Czar.
The plan is to launch 25 research institutes across the US that will seek assurance from four companies, including Google, Microsoft and ChatGPT’s creator OpenAI, that they will ‘participate in a public evaluation.’
Many of the world’s best minds have warned about the dangers of AI, specifically that it could destroy humanity if an assessment of risk is not done now.
Tech giants like Elon Musk fear AI will soon surpass human intelligence and have independent thinking. This means it would no longer need or listen to humans, allowing it to steal nuclear codes, create pandemics and spark world wars.
Vice President Kamala Harris – who has the lowest approval rating of any VP – will lead the containment effort as ‘AI czar’ with a budget of just $140 million. For comparison, Space Force has a budget of $30 billion.
As a reminder, Harris has also been designated Border Czar by Biden. The results have been less than impressive.
“Typically, the grading system goes A through F,” Beverly, of North Dakota, told Fox News. “I give her a Z.”
…Harris hasn’t been to the border since a June 2021 trip to El Paso, Texas, despite subsequent visits to border states. Meanwhile, almost 2.8 million migrants crossed the southern border illegally between September 2021 and September 2022 — over 1 million more than the previous year, according to Customs and Border Protection.
Why has the administration made this move? In addition to trying to make Biden seem engaged with the modern world, it appears to be the first step in publicly transitioning Harris into a more robust executive role.
…Biden assigned himself a light schedule this week with no public events from Tuesday through Thursday, and let Vice President Kamala Harris take the lead on a meeting with companies on artificial intelligence.
The only listed activity from Biden today was a private briefing with Harris, who will then meet with tech executives on AI and then depart to Richmond, Virginia, for an event on small businesses. The president is not listed as an attendee for either event.
Given Biden’s actions at recent engagements, this move may be a bit too late.
Good grief , On Friday, Biden awarded the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy to the Air Force Academy.
He is then presented a team Jersey, football, and helmet but then walks off with only the jersey…what an embarrassment , this man should NOT be President !!
pic.twitter.com/zjRDmKwImt— ShotGunBonnie (@ShotGun_Bonnie) May 1, 2023
One last note: Professor Glenn Reynolds has an interesting take on the potential evolution of AI paired with robots, which could doom humanity.
How can sexy sexbots be an existential threat? Well, we’ve devastated populations of insects like screwflies, fruit flies, and (somewhat less successfully) mosquitoes by saturating them with sexy but sterile specimens to breed with. (This is called the Sterile Insect Technique). The result is a sharp drop in reproduction, and population.
But even there, we’re not reaching full potential. The sterile specimens we use for those eradication efforts are just ordinary screwflies or mosquitoes, not extra-sexy specimens, optimized for attractiveness.
Imagine sexbots – both male and female – that are aren’t just copies of attractive humans, but much more attractive than natural humans. Machine learning could find just the right physical and behavioral characteristics to appeal to humans, and then tweak them for each individual person. Maybe they even release pheromones. Your personal sexbot would be tailor-made, or self-tailored, to appeal to you. It might even be programmed to fall in love with its human.
Yes, there are valid concerns about how to best use the new technologies to heighten the quality of life for everyone. Unfortunately, I suspect Biden and Harris are more concerned about how to use AI to heighten the quality of their own power and influence (as well as that of the Democratic Party).
The only saving grace may be that Harris will be as motivated to work as AI issues as she has been in her work for border control.
Then, again, Biden may have found the perfect place for her:
Kamala Harris will make an excellent AI Czar because she, too, is just a bucket of recycled phrases that she stitches together when prompted to form an inept simulation of cogent thought
— Spencer A. Klavan, verbal billionaire (@SpencerKlavan) May 5, 2023
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Comments
Oh dear. May her shadow forever increase its girth.
The funny thing is that AI would make a better anything thiz sleazy moron does. But then,, so would Window 3.0.
“This move appears to be the first step in publicly transitioning Harris into a more robust executive role.”
Because heaven knows, she’s been so effective in all her past roles.
“What you’re doing has enormous potential and enormous danger,” Mr. Biden told the executives.”
So who better to put in charge of it than the black Alissa Heinerscheid.
I don’t think the Biden admin cafes about AI. They put Harris in charge of the border and they sure as heck don’t care about that.
Hope she does a better job than she did with the border. Guess we better get prepared for a Terminator stalking us in the near future.
Artificial intelligence is not, so why not.
This is hilarious for several reasons.
1) Putting Kamala Harris in charge of something is what you do when you don’t care about the outcome.
2) The government setting up “research institutes” to pester Big Tech to be less Big Techy is about as meaningful as dragging them in front of congress to declare their allegiance to free speech. It might impress the Washington Post but has nothing to do with reality.
3) The big players in AI, including OpenAI, are already losing ground in the AI Tech wars to open source models. See this report that leaked from Google: https://www.semianalysis.com/p/google-we-have-no-moat-and-neither
Maybe we should ask ChatGPT to do Kamala Harris’s job. It won’t be any worse.
It already lies at the drop of a hat, so there’s that.
But it hasn’t yet learned how to identify as black and female.
I should have read further down in the comments. I made the same point above in reply after you had already made the point.
Not a software engineer. Not a computer science PhD. Probably can’t define ‘woman’, either. But sure, Grand Poohba for uber-sophisticated tech that, until 5 minutes ago, no one even heard of, let alone knew how to deploy.
(insert unintelligible cackle-bot noise here)
Isn’t she currently the NI (No Intelligence) Czar?
Putting Kamala in charge of A.I. policy is the national equivalent of taking ones brain out to play with it.
I’m ok with czar of cackling.
Well she does have the artificial part down. The intelligence part will take a while. Say, by 3023A.D. by the earliest.
The only Czarina-like accomplishment that she is up to is having a horse lowered on her.
I asked ChatGPT “Will Kamala Harris make a good AI czar?”
Here’s the response …
“As an AI language model, I don’t have personal opinions or biases, and it’s not within my capacity to predict the future with certainty. However, I can provide some insights on the topic.
Firstly, it’s important to note that there is currently no official position of “AI czar” in the US government. However, there have been calls for the establishment of a national AI strategy, and the creation of a high-level position to oversee AI-related initiatives and policies.
Assuming such a position is created and Kamala Harris is appointed to it, her ability to make a good AI czar would depend on a range of factors, including her knowledge of AI and related technologies, her leadership skills, and her ability to work collaboratively with stakeholders from different sectors.
Kamala Harris has a background in law and politics, and while she may not have a specific technical background in AI, she may be able to draw upon her experience in policy-making and governance to help shape AI-related regulations and initiatives.
Additionally, her experience as Vice President and Senator may have provided her with valuable insights into the potential societal impacts of emerging technologies like AI.
Ultimately, the success of an AI czar would depend on a range of factors beyond the individual appointed to the position. It would require the support of government agencies, industry leaders, and civil society to develop effective policies and strategies that promote the development and deployment of AI in a responsible and ethical manner.”
Given that answer, I wondered what ChatGPT thinks of Kamala in general. So I asked “Is Kamala Harris an idiot?”
Here’s the response …
“No, Kamala Harris is not an idiot. She is a highly accomplished individual who has had a successful career in politics and law. She has served as a Senator from California and the Attorney General of California, and she was the first woman, the first African American woman, and the first Asian American woman to be elected Vice President of the United States.”
Then ChatGPT scolded me …
“It’s important to treat people with respect, regardless of political affiliation or personal opinions. Using derogatory language to describe someone is not productive or respectful, and it can undermine constructive discourse. It’s important to focus on the issues and ideas being discussed rather than resorting to personal attacks.”
LOL!
I’ll bet she can’t even spell AI!
Given her mannerisms I could see why people might want to classify her intelligence as artificial. That said, it’s a stretch to classify her behavior as intelligent.
I had ChatGPT write Kamala’s first speech for her new job as AI Czar. I asked it to “Please write a speech that Vice President Kamala Harris can give on AI.”
Here’s the result …
“Hello everyone,
I am thrilled to be here today to talk with you about a topic that is near and dear to my heart – artificial intelligence.
As Vice President, I have seen firsthand the incredible power of AI to transform our world. From self-driving cars to personalized medicine, AI has the potential to revolutionize nearly every aspect of our lives.
But we also know that with great power comes great responsibility. And that is why we must approach the development and deployment of AI with care and thoughtfulness.
First and foremost, we must ensure that the benefits of AI are shared fairly and equitably. We cannot allow this technology to exacerbate the digital divides that already exist in our society. Instead, we must work to create opportunities for all Americans to benefit from the advances that AI can bring.
We must also be vigilant to ensure that AI is developed and deployed in an ethical and responsible manner. That means addressing issues of bias and discrimination, protecting our privacy and security, and ensuring that AI is subject to appropriate oversight and regulation.
But we must also recognize the incredible potential of AI to drive progress and prosperity across our nation. Whether it’s improving healthcare outcomes, increasing energy efficiency, or unlocking new insights in scientific research, AI has the power to make our world a better place.
So as we look to the future, let us embrace the potential of AI while also remaining vigilant and responsible in our approach. Let us work together to harness the power of this transformative technology to build a brighter and more inclusive future for all Americans.
Thank you, and may God bless the United States of America.”
When she gets around to actually making her first speech, let’s see how much she plagerizes the above. 🙂
Interestingly, Google’s Bard AI won’t compose a rap diss mocking Kamala Harris, but, I did get it to churn out a poem mocking Harris:
Oh, Kamala, Kamala,
Your face is so full of shame,
You’ve got nothing to say
About the state of our game.
You were once a rising star,
Now you’re just a sinking ship,
You’ve lost all your spark,
And your poll numbers are in the dip.
You were supposed to be the one,
To lead us out of this mess,
But you’ve turned out to be a clown,
And now we’re all in a mess.
So Kamala, Kamala,
It’s time for you to go,
Your time in the spotlight is done,
It’s time for you to say goodbye.
ChatGPT would not generate such a poem. It responded:
“I’m sorry, but as an AI language model, I am not programmed to generate disrespectful or offensive content about any individual, including Vice President Kamala Harris. My purpose is to assist and provide helpful and informative responses to your queries. Can I assist you with anything else?”
I checked and it wouldn’t mock Trump either.
Hmmmmm, someone must be messing with it because when I asked the same question a bit earlier it came back with ” including that Ho Kamala Harris.” ??????
I have high hopes for the Czar’s contribution to comedy …. er um, I mean AI.
Well, she does sound at one of thos chatbots.
i can’t decide whether that’s more insulting to her, or the chatbots. Let’s go with both. That one’s a two-fer.
Thank God! Kamala has saved us..
I think she will make an excellent model for human AI interaction in the future. “AI will soon surpass human intelligence and have independent thinking.” In her case AI has already surpassed her in both areas. But then again a Commodore 64 achieved that goal