Meta Platforms Inc.'s (NASDAQ:META) chief AI scientist Yann LeCun has revealed the reason behind his CEO Mark Zuckerberg not being a part of President Joe Biden-led administration's new AI Safety Institute. This team does not include Tesla Inc. CEO and xAI founder Elon Musk, either.
What Happened: LeCun spilled the beans on the conspicuous absence of Zuckerberg from the panel of experts that has been assembled by the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas.
Reacting to a post by Perplexity AI CEO Aravind Srinivas, LeCun revealed that they "were snubbed" by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS.)
We were snubbed.
— Yann LeCun (@ylecun) April 28, 2024
The panel has several major tech personalities on its board, including OpenAI's Sam Altman, Microsoft Corp.'s Satya Nadella, and Alphabet Inc.'s Sundar Pichai, among others.
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The newly established board, under the leadership of President Biden, aims to advise DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and the White House on AI-related matters.
The board's primary function is to advance the "responsible development and deployment" of AI technologies, as per a document published by DHS.
Notable members of the board include CEOs from Adobe, Anthropic, AMD, Amazon Web Services, Cisco, IBM, Nvidia, Delta Air Lines, Humane Intelligence, Occidental Petroleum, and Northrop Grumman.
They are joined by academics from universities, civil rights and humanitarian institutions, the mayor of Seattle, Washington, and the governor of Maryland.
Mayorkas expressed his gratitude for the participation of the U.S. AI sector's elite.
Why It Matters: The formation of the AI Safety and Security Board comes at a time when the regulation of AI technologies is a topic of global concern. The U.S. has been taking steps to address this issue, with the DHS board being the latest development.
Earlier in 2023, Vice President Kamala Harris announced the establishment of the United States AI Safety Institute following President Biden's AI executive order. The institute was tasked with developing and publishing guidelines, benchmark tests, and best practices for examining potentially harmful AI systems.
However, the U.S. approach to AI regulation is considerably less hands-on than that of the EU, leading analysts to question whether Europe's more proactive stance on regulating tech firms operating within its economic area better serves citizen security and privacy.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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