TechCheck+ How OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's lobbying power tamed Washington 10/31/24

TechCheck

CNBC

Disruptors, Investing, Faang, Technology, Business, Management, Cnbc, Tech

4.8 • 56 Ratings

🗓️ 31 October 2024

⏱️ 13 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Come Election Day, the future of big tech won’t be decided by either presidential candidate. Instead, OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman has emerged as one of the most powerful people shaping AI policy. He’s put on a masterclass in wooing Washington, learning from Mark Zuckerberg and social media’s missteps on the Hill. And he’s turned OpenAI into a lobbying powerhouse, bringing on staff with deep ties to DC like its head of Global Affairs Chris Lehane. But just like when social media was in its early stages, lawmakers don’t have a handle on AI yet as the stakes only grow larger. Can we trust the people behind the curtain?

Transcript

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0:00.0	Come election day, the future of tech, it won't be decided by Trump or Harris.
0:05.1	I've worked with the private sector my entire career.
0:08.0	I, even as vice president, working with some of the biggest banks and biggest tech companies.
0:13.0	Google's got a lot of powers.
0:14.0	You would break them up in other words.
0:16.0	I'd do something.
0:17.0	Since that's about the extent of their tech policies,
0:20.0	there's a man behind the curtain.
0:22.0	My worst fears are that we cause significant.
0:25.0	We, the field, the technology, the industry
0:27.0	caused significant harm to the world.
0:29.0	Open AI and its CEO, Sam Altman,
0:32.0	they're doing more behind the scenes than any candidate is saying in public.
0:35.0	We talked about the need for the US to have a public, a general policy about AI leadership.
0:40.0	At stake, powerful new technology in an increasingly AI-driven world that is
0:45.2	impacting privacy, jobs, even national security.
0:49.4	I'm Deirdre Bosa and this week in tech, why the most powerful person in tech policy isn't in Washington,
0:55.8	but right here in San Francisco. Washington loves Sam Altman.
1:15.0	This has been a tremendous hearing.
1:18.0	Senators are noted for their short attention spans,
1:21.0	but I've sat through this entire hearing and enjoyed every
1:24.6	minute of it. This has been one of the best hearings I've had this Congress.
	...

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