House Representative Jay Obernolte (R-CA) discusses pivoting from his background in computer science to entering congress, where he now leads the House AI Task force. Tasked with creating a regulatory framework for AI by year's end, Obernolte addresses the balance between mitigating AI's risks and enabling its beneficial uses, critical for economic competitiveness and national security. Obernolte criticizes the European Union's approach to AI regulation, proposing instead a focus on reducing consumer harms and considering whether existing sectoral regulators could regulate AI effectively. Highlighting AI's potential in increasing worker productivity, Obernolte makes a case that this is vital for US prosperity, urging collective effort in advancing AI.

This session was recorded live at The Hill & Valley Forum in 2024, a private bipartisan community of lawmakers and innovators committed to harnessing the power of technology to address America's most pressing national security challenges. Guests included Venture Capitalists Vinod Khosla, Joe Lonsdale, and Roelof Botha, tech CEOs Alex Karp (Palantir) and Alex Wang (Scale AI) as well as politicians such as house speaker Mike Johnson, Senators Todd Young, and Cory Booker. The Hill & Valley podcast is part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: www.turpentine.co

LINKS:

Watch this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Be5AGR82MaY

The Hill & Valley Forum https://www.thehillandvalleyforum.com/

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TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) A personal journey into AI and politics

(02:10) Leading the AI task force

(02:33) The Challenge of Regulating AI: A federal framework

(03:38) Balancing AI Regulation and innovation

(04:38) Sectoral regulation vs. new agency for AI

(07:17) International AI ambitions and security concerns

(10:37) The importance of continuing AI development

(11:43) Optimism for AI's Impact on worker productivity and economy

(12:51) A push for more STEM education