Two Republican senators voiced support for continued government investment in artificial intelligence research efforts, citing its role in larger U.S. national security goals at the AI + Expo in Washington, D.C.
Sens. Todd Young, R-Ind., and Mike Rounds, R-S.D., spoke on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, on the importance of public funding to spearhead innovation and breakthroughs across the AI sector. Echoing the points in the Senate AI Working Group’s Bipartisan Roadmap For Artificial Intelligence Policy, released last Congress, both senators said public investment in AI research and development will keep the U.S. a global leader in the field.
“To fully harness AI’s potential and scientific discovery, we must provide researchers with the tools to work faster and more effectively,” Rounds said. “Just as the Space Race pushed the boundaries of human ingenuity in the 20th century, and the Digital Revolution reshaped the industries in the 21st, we now are in a new era, one where AI can supercharge scientific progress.”
Speaking the day before, Young said he has encouraged the Trump administration to continue supporting research, albeit with a critical eye regarding what fields to fund, keeping with the administration’s efforts to shrink select federal spending.
“Let’s not let up on research,” Young said. “In fact, consistent with the vision of the Chips and Science Act, we ought to be doubling public research right now. We ought to be doing a lot more now.”
Rounds and Young also backed the light-touch regulatory approach that leading policymakers, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios, have publicly supported. Rounds linked this approach to the national security imperative that the U.S. win the race to AI dominance.
“We recognize the need to regulate AI in a way that incentivizes development that happens here in the United States rather than in China,” Rounds said. “In other words, we have to put together a regulatory framework which is light in touch and that incentivizes and that keeps the development of AI here, rather than allowing it to go someplace else or pushing it someplace else.”
Rounds further referenced the request for public input he and Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., made in early May for details on how to modernize U.S. science infrastructure to better support AI research and development.
For Young, the regulatory ideal framework consists of an offensive and defensive strategy. Solid investments in workforce talent, research and “key institutions” would serve as the government’s offensive plan, while export controls are the main defense mechanism. He said marrying export controls with a flexible regulatory regime will help spur domestic innovation and outpace adversaries.
“Our doctrine on export controls is an evolving doctrine, as it should be,” Young said. “We need a nimble system of export controls and regulations so that our adversaries aren’t given the keys to the kingdom.”
Both senators also told industry to keep communicating. Rounds said that lawmakers need to “step up” their understanding of AI systems and industry trends, telling industry partners that their perspective and feedback is crucial to helping develop an effective regulatory scheme.
“To the extent [the private sector] can either bring us a problem, ideally, [the private sector] bring us a solution along with it, but identify the real pain points you’re feeling or the opportunities you feel like we’re not seizing,” Young said.
Touching on the national strategy employed by the biggest rival to the U.S. — China — Rounds said the Chinese Communist Party’s unified government and industry streamline new technological breakthroughs. The best bet for the U.S. to counter China’s advancement is to enable private sector and government communication.
“The United States is home to the world’s leading AI developers, and there is a growing interest in strengthening collaboration between these innovators and our national security enterprise. We need that connectivity,” Rounds said. “How we develop and deploy it will determine whether it strengthens our economy, national security and values, or whether we fall behind.”
