A congressional advisory body is calling on lawmakers to establish and fund a “Manhattan Project-like program dedicated to racing to and acquiring an Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) capability.”
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission in its annual report released on Nov. 19 established 32 recommendations to Congress, including six sharply focused on the United States’ emerging technology competition with China.
According to the report, AGI is generally defined as systems that are as good as or better than human capabilities across all cognitive domains and would “usurp the sharpest human minds at every task.”
Funding AGI capabilities was the commission’s top recommendation to Congress.
Specifically, the report calls on the Pentagon to ensure the AGI project becomes a national priority by assigning a “DX Rating” status to AI development programs, giving them top funding and resources.
The report also directs Congress to provide broad, multiyear contracting authority to the executive branch for leading AI, cloud, and data center companies to advance policy at a pace and scale “consistent with the goal of U.S. AGI leadership.”
While AGI remains theoretical, the commission emphasized the risk of falling behind China in this domain. Beijing’s investments in AI span both civilian and military applications, raising concerns about the potential for AGI to tilt the global balance of power.
The report’s other five recommendations for Congress on the emerging tech race with China include:
- Supporting significant Federal investments in biotechnology;
- Considering legislation restricting or banning the import of certain technologies and services controlled by Chinese entities, including autonomous humanoid robots with advanced capabilities;
- Encouraging the administration’s ongoing rulemaking efforts regarding “connected vehicles” to cover industrial machinery, Internet of Things devices, appliances, and other connected devices produced by Chinese entities;
- Considering legislation prohibiting granting seats on boards of directors and information rights to China-based investors in strategic technology sectors; and
- Supporting Federal integration and investments in quantum technology.
