Tesla chief and X owner Elon Musk believes that California should approve SB 1047 AI safety bill that lays down deployment regulations for tech companies in the state. However, other tech leaders have opposed the proposal, saying it limits innovation and kills competition.
Elon Musk's Call
Musk recently posted on X, “I think California should probably pass the SB 1047 AI safety bill.” The tech entrepreneur said that any product or technology that is a potential public risk has to be regulated. This statement has divided the internet as Musk founded xAI in 2023 for developments in the field. The X owner has also been vocal about artificial intelligence on the platform through Grok, a generative artificial intelligence chatbot.
Stakeholder Opinions
Bindu Reddy, the CEO and co-founder of Abacus.AI responded, “It’s premature to pass a bill when we don’t understand exactly how AI can be dangerous.” Meanwhile, other tech giants like ChatGPT developer OpenAI, Adobe, and Microsoft are supporting a separate AB 3211 bill. Ari Paul, CIO and founder of BlockTower Capital suggests that Musk invested in building the data center before addressing regulatory compliance in the sector. Paul believes that Musk is trying to gain a competitive edge by the timing. Einar Vollset, co-founder of VC fund TinySeed also opined that SB 1047 could potentially stop open source models.
Objectives of SB 1047
SB 1047 proposes for responsible development of artificial intelligence by including safety protocols, compliance audits, risk management, and disclosure. In contrast to AB 3211, which focuses on how artificial intelligence creates and labels digital content, including deepfakes, SB 1047 is a more comprehensive bill. The bill also includes provisions for establishing a public cloud computing infrastructure, known as “CalCompute” to promote safe and equitable artificial intelligence innovation. The goal of the bill is to ensure that artificial intelligence technology advances in a manner that responsibly safeguards public safety.
Based on the California legislative database, the lawmakers might have introduced at least 69 bills with the term AI in 2023-24. Most of the bills are no longer under consideration. SB 1047 remains a topic of discussion among the tech community and legislators.
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