WASHINGTON – U.S. Reps. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, and Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., introduced bipartisan legislation on Wednesday to develop a strategy to prepare for new threats that face the country’s national security apparatus, financial markets, and sensitive data. The bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Practices, Logistics, Actions, and Necessities Act (AI PLAN Act) would require the Administration to create a plan to prevent AI from being utilized to endanger America’s economy and national security.
“Artificial intelligence is an emerging technology that has created new opportunities and technological advancements to help move our society forward. There is also a ton of risk that our adversaries – like the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea, Russia, and Iran – will use it to generate misinformation, commit fraud, and perpetrate crimes,” Nunn said. “Our adversaries will continue to invest in AI technology, so America must develop a plan now to strengthen our defenses and thwart their attacks to protect American businesses, markets, and families.”
Nunn believes a nefarious use of AI by adversaries, like China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia, to mislead Americans is imminent and will be used to coerce Americans to turn over their data, disrupt financial markets, and raise false flags that trigger our defense components. Nunn believes this needs to be carefully approached and appropriately addressed. AI has already been used to create fake images, including a fake explosion at the Pentagon, which sent ripples across the country, even disrupting the stock market. AI has also been used by criminals to clone voices and call parents with claims that their children are being held hostage in order to demand paid a ransom.
“State-backed hackers and scammers — linked to the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea, Iran, and Russia — are already employing artificial intelligence to generate misinformation, commit fraud, and carry out financial crimes. As our adversaries continue to invest in AI and develop this technology, Congress must swiftly address the gaps in our defense against adversarial uses of AI,” Spanberger said. “We must protect American businesses, people, financial markets, and supply chains from foreign influence. I’m proud to join Congressman Nunn in taking real steps to strengthen our nation’s defenses against economic and national security threats from maligned use of this technology.”
The bipartisan AI PLAN Act would require the U.S. Departments of Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security to develop a plan to combat nefarious artificial intelligence use, including:
- Utilize current enforcement tools to combat fraud, financial crime, and AI-generated misinformation
- Implement new, cross-jurisdictional techniques to defend against these attacks
- Promote U.S. innovation of AI and other emerging technologies
Read the text of the bill below:
Nunn-AI-PLAN-Act
