POLITICO Dispatch

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was abruptly ousted by the company's board — until he was brought back days later. The Silicon Valley melodrama revealed tensions over how to manage the future of AI. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly discusses the fallout with Dewey Murdick, executive director at Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology.

AI-generated deepfakes are expected to disrupt the 2024 election cycle. But Matt Perault and Scott Babwah Breenen at the University of North Carolina's Center on Technology Policy say some fears are overblown. On POLITICO Tech, they talk with host Steven Overly about the potential problems with and policy fixes for political deepfakes.

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Ca) is one of the few members of Congress with a background in computer science. But in this rebroadcast from September, he tells Steven Overly why he believes lawmakers don't need tech expertise to regulate AI.

Former President Barack Obama recently published a short list of articles, podcasts and books that have shaped his views on AI. And among them is a book that was published in September called, “The Coming Wave,” written by Mustafa Suleyman, the co-founder of Google DeepMind and current CEO of Inflection AI. In this rebroadcast from September, Steven Overly talks with Mustafa Suleyman, the chief executive of Inflection AI and a co-founder of Google DeepMind, who argues there are 10 steps that governments and companies should take to mitigate the  most destructive threats posed by artificial intelligence.

The writers and actor's strikes may be over, but many of the issues at the center of the strike — including AI — remain ongoing. In this rebroadcast from August, Steven Overly talks with filmmaker Justine Bateman, who predicts expects artificial intelligence will be the harbinger of the end of movies and television as we know it.

Artificial intelligence is already reshaping the world's power centers, from how governments operate to how industry and advocates wield influence. On POLITICO Tech, Penta Group partner Andrea Christianson tells host Steven Overly why the public affairs firm is fully embracing generative AI — and what restrictions it's had to put in place.   Steven Overly is the host of the POLITICO Tech podcast.  Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.  Kara Tabor is an audio producer for POLITICO.

Lobbying on AI is booming on K Street, with influencers around Washington selling themselves as AI experts who can help companies navigate how Congress and the Biden administration will tackle the hot topic in town. Hailey Fuchs talks with host Steven Overly.

U.K. tech secretary Michelle Donelan makes a return visit to POLITICO Tech, this time during a U.S. visit that includes stops in Washington, Seattle and San Francisco. She tells host Steven Overly how the U.S. and U.K. will join forces to combat the risks of artificial intelligence, and offers advice for U.S. policymakers on both AI and online safety.

President Biden is slated to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday in San Francisco. It's their first face-to-face meeting in a year, and comes amid ever-escalating tensions over tech issues like AI and microchips. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly asks Xiaomeng Lu of the Eurasia Group to outline expectations for the meeting -- and whether major resolutions are likely.

Google sued on Monday to stop unidentified scammers from using a fake version of its AI chatbot to spread malware. The company sees the case as an example of how it protects consumers. But the liability that Google will assume? That's another matter. On POLITICO Tech, Google general counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado joins host Steven Overly to talk about AI and legal responsibility.

In the hours after Hamas waged its deadly Oct. 7th assault on Israel, the country came under a different type of attack: cyber attacks. On POLITICO Tech, Atlantic Council security research fellow Ruslan Trad explains why the barrage of hackers targeting Israel is different from past conflicts -- and what they seem to really want.

There's been a lot of attention this week on Arturo Béjar, the latest whistleblower to come forward with concerns about how Meta handles online content aimed at children. He testified before the Senate earlier this week, and he's been cooperating with investigations brought by the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general. On Politico Tech today, he talks with Rebecca Kern and Steven Overly about why now was the right time to come forward.

Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) face an uphill battle to get their Kids Online Safety Act to the president's desk. On POLITICO Tech, the lawmakers discuss Tuesday's testimony from the Meta whistleblower and whether his revelations will put fresh momentum behind their legislation.

The Senate will hear from a former Meta executive today who says the company is not adequately addressing how social media content harms children. But he's not the first to come forward. On POLITICO Tech, Meta's original whistleblower, Frances Haugen, weighs in on the latest accusations against Meta.

Facing a wave of violent crime in 2022, New Orleans decided to lift a ban on facial recognition technology and allow police to use it to identify certain suspects. But police were required to track how often the technology is used and whether it actually works. On POLITICO Tech, privacy reporter Alfred Ng and host Steven Overly discuss what the data show a year later.    

The fledgling industry for betting on U.S. election outcomes  — through regulated exchanges, not black markets — has been subject to immense regulatory scrutiny. Now, start-up company Kalshi is suing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for blocking its plan to create one of these political markets. On POLITICO Tech, Kalshi co-founder Tarek Mansour argues these exchanges are not only legal, but good for democracy.

The U.K. has brought together world leaders for a much-hyped summit on AI safety this week. And just before it got underway, the Biden administration unveiled a sweeping AI executive order, followed by a policy address from Vice President Kamala Harris. On POLITICO Tech, Playbook co-author Eugene Daniels joins host Steven Overly to discuss the political jockeying to be the world's AI leader.

Internet access has been significantly disrupted in Gaza since the start of its ongoing war with Israel, including a recent blackout that lasted more than 30 hours. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly speaks with Palestinian community activist Nour Swirki and an internet watchdog  — NetBlocks director Alp Toker — about what it means to be disconnected from friends, family and the world.

The Biden administration's much-anticipated executive order aims to send a message that the U.S. will both create and regulate AI. The audience? Washington, Silicon Valley and the world. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly speaks with one of the order's architects, White House Special Adviser on AI Ben Buchanan.

Student loan borrowers must soon resume payments for the first time in three years -- and many are flocking to social media for answers about their options. POLITICO education reporter Bianca Quilantan tells host Steven Overly that they are finding questionable advice and misinformation that is drowning out the Biden administration's own message.

The Supreme Court will hear a case brought by two Republican attorneys general accusing the Biden administration of coercing social media companies to remove conservative posts. Setting the politics aside, the ruling could have major implications for online speech. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly asks Alex Abdo from the Knight First Amendment Institute to break it down.

The NAACP has made the regulation of artificial intelligence a cornerstone of its advocacy in recent years, as the technology has the potential to exacerbate existing barriers to justice and equity — and create new ones. On POLITICO Tech, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson tells host Steven Overly why Washington must force tech companies to put people over profits.

More than 30 states filed a sweeping lawsuit against Meta on Tuesday — accusing the company of violating children's privacy and misrepresenting the platform's harms. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Rebecca Kern and host Steven Overly break down the accusations and what the case potentially means for  Facebook and Instagram.

Global regulators face no shortage of open questions about how to assess the risks of artificial intelligence — and who should bear responsibility for addressing them. On today's POLITICO Tech, Google DeepMind general counsel Tom Lue tells host Steven Overly how the company is answering those questions.

A year ago, the Biden administration took a direct hit at China's tech ambitions when it slapped trade restrictions on microchips and the equipment needed to make them. Just last week, U.S. officials tightened the screws further by expanding those restrictions -- what the government calls export controls -- to cover certain sophisticated chips that are necessary to develop artificial intelligence. On today's show, Steven Overly talks with Thea Rozman Kendler, the Commerce Department official behind the latest rules.

There's a contingent of "effective altruists" pouring millions of dollars into Washington to influence the policy debate around artificial intelligence. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Brendan Bordelon and host Steven Overly discuss the motives and ethics of one of the movement's biggest players in town.

The British ambassador opened her residence to techies from around Washington this week, part of a promotional blitz for the UK's upcoming AI safety summit. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly's live interview from that gathering with Emran Mian, one of the U.K.'s top tech civil servants.

One year ago, the White House published an AI Bill of Rights. On POLITICO Tech, the co-author of that blueprint, Suresh Venkatasubramian, tells Steven Overly how the Biden administration should build on it with a forthcoming executive order that gives federal agencies directions for buying and using artificial intelligence. 

The U.K. aims to be at the forefront of the global conversation about artificial intelligence. The cornerstone of that effort is a safety summit it will be hosting in two weeks that British tech officials are very eager to talk about. On today's show, Michelle Donelan, the U.K.'s secretary of state for science, innovation and technology, talks with host Steven Overly about the summit and where the U.K. wants to position itself in the AI conversation.

Nathaniel Fick has a complex mandate as the first U.S. ambassador at large for cyberspace and digital policy. He was recently in Kyoto, Japan, to finalize an artificial intelligence pact with G-7 countries. At that same time, Hamas launched an attack on Israel that shocked the world and set off a deadly war. On today's POLITICO Tech, Fick explains to host Steven Overly how tech diplomacy factors into both.

Intel's plans to invest billions in U.S. semiconductor production have made it a White House darling. But the Biden administration's crackdown on China's access to chips could still sting the company's business there. On POLITICO Tech, Intel's Bruce Andrews tells Steven Overly why the company wants to see a less restrictive approach.

The border between Israel and Gaza was supposed to be fortified with some of the world's most sophisticated security technology. But Hamas fighters managed to breach it anyway, and carried out a brutal attack. On POLITICO Tech, deputy tech editor Daniella Cheslow explains what the attack reveals about Israel's world-class border technology, and the glaring tech disparities between people living in Israel and Gaza.

Social media was a key tool of Hamas militants as they waged their brutal attack on Israel over the weekend. On POLITICO Tech, the Atlantic Council's Graham Brookie tells Steven Overly how the group leaned on platforms with loose rules against terrorism propaganda and misinformation to sow fear and misinformation.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna is both making artificial intelligence and grappling with its effects. On today's POLITICO Tech, Krishna tells host Steven Overly why AI makes must be held accountable and why he's not exactly worried about AI displacing a bunch of human workers.

It's been a year since the Biden administration imposed trade restrictions on American companies selling microchips and equipment to China. On today's POLITICO Tech, Steven Overly breaks down what loopholes still exist and how Washington might try to plug them with Gregory Allen from the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Next year will mark the first time the U.S., U.K. and EU each have major elections at the same time. That will be a big test for democracies already battered by disinformation. On today's POLITICO Tech, reporter Mark Scott and Steven Overly explore this unique political moment and the consequences of how it plays out online.

Using AI to improve Cheetos? That's something PepsiCo has experimented with. On today's POLITICO Tech, Athina Kanioura, chief strategy and transformation officer for PepsiCo, tells Steven Overly that using AI to make employees faster and more efficient hasn't led PepsiCo to replace human workers as many fear. And why the company has determined that in some jobs the technology is simply off limits. 

As Congress eyes new rules for artificial intelligence, Democratic Rep. Yvette Clarke argues there's a fundamental element of the technology that should not overlook: the humans behind it. On today's POLITICO Tech, Clarke tells Steven Overly that Congress faces a critical moment for addressing human bias in AI systems -- but it remains to be seen whether bills she's re-introduced can gain traction this time around.

EU officials are holding negotiations over new artificial intelligence rules with hopes of having them in place by year's end. On today's POLITICO Tech, one of the leaders behind that effort, EU parliamentarian Dragos Tudorache, tells Steven Overly what advice he's given U.S. lawmakers as they embark on their on regulatory process.

The Biden administration is crafting an executive order to capture the good and minimize the bad from AI. And it's working to get other countries aligned on AI and cyber risks.  In a live taping of POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly gets an update on those efforts from Anne Neuberger, the deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging tech.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) has been through his share of tech battles on Capitol Hill — and seen lawmakers fail to implement legislation time and again. On today's POLITICO Tech, he argues Congress needs to take a different approach to regulating artificial intelligence and even cracking down on Chinese tech. His pitch: Be less ambitious.

Yesterday the Federal Trade Commission dropped its long-awaited case against Amazon. In a massive legal complaint, federal antitrust officials outlined exactly why they believe Amazon is a monopoly, and how it has used its market power to kneecap its competitors. Former FTC chair Bill Kovacic gives host Steven Overly his download on the case.

The U.N. General Assembly displayed just how focused world leaders are on artificial intelligence. The gathering also raised real questions about whether existing global institutions are equipped to handle it. On today's POLITICO Tech, former Ambassador Karen Kornbluh breaks down obstacles to creating global AI rules and argues a new global body is part of the solution.

On the show today, Mohar Chatterjee talks with Sam Levine, director of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection and one of the key people on the front-lines of defining market practices for big tech.

Former Rep. David Cicilline formed an unlikely alliance with Republican Ken Buck in a failed bid to break up big tech companies. Though he has since left Congress, Cicilline's distrust of the industry hasn't diminished. On POLITICO Tech, he reflects on what he and Buck started, and  the rising pressure on his former colleagues to curb tech's power.