SALT LAKE CITY — The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence tools is prompting some scrutiny from the Utah State Legislature, with lawmakers planning bills to put guardrails up around the new technology.
"This really is going to change our world, not in years, but in months," said Sen. Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy.
Sunny Washington used to head the political action committee for Utah’s multi-billion dollar tech industry.
"One of the things I noted when I came up to the Capitol was just the sheer number of bills being presented each year. I think last year it was over a thousand. And when you think about a 45-day session and how quickly you need to read this, it was really difficult," said Washington.
She’s now helped design Seer, an app using artificial intelligence to help cut through the complexity of a state legislature.
"Using the power of AI to generate summaries and quick explanations so that the everyday citizen can be involved in the legislative process," explained Washington.
AI is huge right now, with its rapid rise both thrilling and alarming policymakers.
"It’s an incredibly useful and powerful tool," said Sen. Cullimore.
The legislature has convened a work group to look at AI, with lawmakers seeing benefits in helping workforce and increasing government efficiency.
"There’s so many applications that could be used for good, but we’re also we’re also making sure we’re ready for potential negatives," said Rep. Jefferson Moss, R-Saratoga Springs. "We’re looking at civil liberties, when we look at privacy rights, when we look at data.
But lawmakers also worry about the harms, including hoax calls and videos that have scammed people or spread misinformation.
"Do we need to consider criminal laws surrounding AI and technology and publishing things created solely by AI and deepfakes?" Sen. Cullimore asks.
Lawmakers say to expect bills not only expanding the use of AI for many good reasons, but also criminalizing some uses of artificial intelligence for public safety and protecting privacy.
Even tech company CEOs have expressed a willingness to have some regulation.
"I do think there should be guardrails but I also think the people making these tools need to be involved in that process," said Washington. "I think sometimes we get scared because we simply don’t understand the technology."
Washington doesn’t see AI replacing what people do on Capitol Hill to advance policy.
"The thing that humans can do that AI can’t is understand a little bit more context, understand the nuance and the relationships and the people behind it. So that still needs to happen, but can we give people back time or open up a window for people to engage? And that way you can use that time to do what humans can do best is relationships."
