Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has been on a lobbying campaign in Washington to set the agenda for regulating artificial intelligence (A.I.). This comes after his start-up released the ChatGPT chatbot last year. Altman has demonstrated the technology to lawmakers on Capitol Hill to dispel fears surrounding the technology and to educate others on its complexities. Altman has also met with political and business leaders across the globe in an effort to help shape regulations and establish safety standards in the industry. OpenAI’s strategy has caught the attention of US lawmakers, and Altman has been invited to brief committees, propose ideas and travel overseas to promote regulation of the quickly evolving technology. Nevertheless, some lawmakers are cautious about relying too heavily on Altman and other tech executives to educate them. It remains to be seen how long the goodwill towards OpenAI can last and whether Altman’s proposals will benefit larger, more established A.I. companies.
