U.S. House forms AI task force as legislative push stalls

Congress efforts to pass legislation addressing AI have stalled despite numerous high-level forums and legislative proposals.

Leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives said Tuesday they are forming a bipartisan task force to explore potential legislation to address concerns around artificial intelligence.

Efforts in Congress to pass legislation addressing AI have stalled despite numerous high-level forums and legislative proposals over the past year.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, and Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the task force would be charged with producing a comprehensive report and consider "guardrails that may be appropriate to safeguard the nation against current and emerging threats."

Generative AI - which can create text, photos and videos in response to open-ended prompts - has spurred excitement as well as fears it could make some jobs obsolete, upend elections and potentially overpower humans and have catastrophic effects.

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The issue received new attention after a fake robocall in January imitating President Joe Biden sought to dissuade people from voting for him in New Hampshire's Democratic primary election. The Federal Communications Commission declared this month calls made with AI-generated voices are illegal.

The task force report will include "guiding principles, forward-looking recommendations and bipartisan policy proposals developed in consultation with committees" in Congress.