‘We absolutely can’t surrender,’ top Republican says of AI race with China

House Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie said Wednesday that he agrees serious concerns exist about the growing power of artificial intelligence — but warned against adopting the kinds of strict regulations that he argues have depressed tech advances in Europe.

“If you want to say, ‘We’re just gonna turn this over to a handful of elite educated people in a room … well, that’s how Europe’s run,” the Kentucky Republican said during the POLITICO Decoded Summit in Washington. He added that such a system would give just a few leading AI developers disproportionate regulatory power and limit other companies’ ability to compete, “and I don’t think that’s a good path to have.”

He added that whatever guardrails Washington adopts must not limit the industry in a manner that could hinder the United States’ standing in the global AI race with China.

“We absolutely can’t surrender,” Guthrie said. “And I think that’s what it would be if we stopped AI development.”