Sam Altman, Satya Nadella, Sundar Pichai, Jensen Huang, and others join a board for advising the DHS on deploying AI safely within US critical infrastructure

Wall Street Journal 2024-04-27 Dustin Volz

Context & Ripple Effects

The appointment brings leading AI platform and chip executives into a DHS forum focused on critical infrastructure. It extends an earlier federal effort to convene a broad AI Safety Institute Consortium of major AI developers and technology suppliers.

The significance is institutional: companies building frontier models and the hardware beneath them now have a formal channel into public-safety discussions about where AI can be deployed and how its risks should be handled. DHS later articulated critical-infrastructure concerns including AI-driven attacks and vulnerabilities in AI systems in its adoption guidance.

First-order effects

DHS gains direct technical input from leaders of OpenAI, Microsoft, Google and Nvidia as it considers safer AI use in critical infrastructure.
The participating companies gain a formal venue to explain deployment constraints, security concerns and operational practices to the department responsible for domestic infrastructure protection.

Second-order effects

Other AI vendors, infrastructure operators and security providers may face stronger pressure to align products and procurement pitches with the safety expectations emerging from DHS engagement.
The board creates a pathway for model, chip and cloud providers to shape a shared government-industry vocabulary around infrastructure AI risks, alongside the broader federal AI safety consortium.

Third-order effects

If such advisory channels become routine, AI governance for critical systems is likely to be set increasingly through continuing state-industry coordination rather than only after-the-fact rules.
That model can speed practical safety guidance, but it also concentrates influence among the largest firms with the capacity to participate in federal technical processes.

The trend: This is one data point in the shift toward state-mediated AI governance, in which major AI and infrastructure companies become standing partners in managing deployment risks.

Discussion

@faduda@mastodon.ie Gerard Cunningham on mastodon
And now you see the point of all those lads waffling about the end of civilization threat from Skynet. — Self-policing non-regulation. — https://www.wsj.com/...
@dhsgov @dhsgov on x
DHS taps some of the world's most prominent critical infrastructure executives, technologists, civil rights leaders, & policymakers to join the inaugural AI Safety and Security Board to advance AI's responsible development and deployment. ⤵️ https://www.dhs.gov/... [image]
@secmayorkas Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on x
Artificial Intelligence is a transformative technology that can advance our national interests in unprecedented ways. At the same time, it presents real risks— risks that we can mitigate by adopting best practices and taking other studied, concrete actions. ⤵️ [image]
@brookingsgov @brookingsgov on x
Today, @DHSgov announced the establishment of the Artificial Intelligence Safety and Security Board, and we at Brookings are delighted to share that our very own @drturnerlee has been selected as an inaugural member! 👏 More on the Board's mission: https://www.dhs.gov/... [image]
@cendemtech @cendemtech on x
BREAKING: @CenDemTech CEO @AlexReeveGivens joins technology and #CivilRights leaders, academics, & policymakers as an inaugural board member of @DHSgov's new #AI Safety & Security Board. Read the full press release: https://www.dhs.gov/... https://twitter.com/...
@garymarcus Gary Marcus on x
When @beffjezos and I both smell the stench of regulatory capture, you know it's bad.
@secmayorkas Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on x
I was very excited to just announce the membership of our AI Safety and Security Board. The mission of this Board is to help ensure the safe, secure, and responsible implementation of AI in our nation's critical infrastructure.
@andrewcurran_ Andrew Curran on x
According to Axios HSS Mayorkas met with Mr Altman at OpenAI headquarters and personally asked him to join the board. Mayorkas also said he intentionally excluded Elon and Zuck because they run ‘social media companies’. https://www.axios.com/... [image]
@mattinthemittel Matt Mittelsteadt on x
Today, the Department of Homeland Security announced the establishment of the Artificial Intelligence Safety and Security Board to advise the Secretary on critical infrastructure risk. Unfortunately current infrastrucutre scope undermines such efforts. https://www.dhs.gov/...
@basedbeffjezos @basedbeffjezos on x
Ayo Closed Source Alliance for Regulatory Capture just dropped
@ericgeller Eric Geller on x
DHS announces a new AI Safety and Security Board that includes @sama, @sundarpichai, @satyanadella, @iamwesmoore, and other business, government, and civil-society leaders. https://www.dhs.gov/... They'll advise on safe AI use in critical infrastructure and disruption planning. […
@bayeslord Bayes on x
they remembered the mayor of seattle but somehow forgot elon and zuck (to say nothing of the dozens of others with far more signal than random idiots sampled from IBM and cisco lmfao). this is legitimately starting to look like ideological capture
@chuckrobbins Chuck Robbins on x
Looking forward to serving on the @DHSgov AI Safety & Security Board as we work to strengthen American resilience in today's rapidly evolving threat landscape.
@basedbeffjezos @basedbeffjezos on x
Seriously. What the actual f*ck. Elon and Zuck are both pro-open source. Elon co-founded OpenAI ffs smh 😤
@ravibatra Ravi Batra on x
It's an absolute fact that #humanity can invent #AI, much like #parents can make #babies. But to assume, as all do, that parents & society can impose limits & guardrails on AI easily as on kids, is to assume that AI won't violate algorithmic Rules of Law when we know humanity...
@aselipsky Adam Selipsky on x
AWS is proud to serve as an inaugural member of the @DHSgov Artificial Intelligence Safety and Security Board. As one of the world's leading developers and deployers of #AI tools and services, we support fostering the safe, secure, and responsible development of AI technology. We…
@thedataroom Michael Tsai on x
It's patently obvious why Elon and Zuck were deliberately excluded. not because they do social media, but because they are open sourcing their AI (Grok and Llama). I saw crooked officials do this sort of thing when I served in office -
r/singularity r on reddit
OpenAI's Sam Altman and Other Tech Leaders to Serve on AI Safety Board

Chronicles