Trump’s Anti-Bias AI Order Is Just More Bias

On November 2, 2022, I attended a Google AI event in New York City. One of the themes was responsible AI. As I listened to executives talk about how they aligned their technology with human values, I realized that the malleability of AI models was a double-edged sword. Models could be tweaked to, say, minimize biases, but also to enforce a specific point of view. Governments could demand manipulation to censor unwelcome facts and promote propaganda. I envisioned this as something that an authoritarian regime like China might employ. In the United States, of course, the Constitution would prevent the government from messing with the outputs of AI models created by private companies.

This Wednesday, the Trump administration released its AI manifesto, a far-ranging action plan for one of the most vital issues facing the country—and even humanity. The plan generally focuses on besting China in the race for AI supremacy. But one part of it seems more in sync with China’s playbook. In the name of truth, the US government now wants AI models to adhere to Donald Trump’s definition of that word.

You won’t find that intent plainly stated in the 28-page plan. Instead it says, “It is essential that these systems be built from the ground up with freedom of speech and expression in mind, and that U.S. government policy does not interfere with that objective. We must ensure that free speech flourishes in the era of AI and that AI procured by the Federal government objectively reflects truth rather than social engineering agendas.”

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This is an edition of Steven Levy’s Backchannel newsletter. Read previous coverage from Steven Levy here.