In a stark warning from across the Atlantic, US Senator Bernie Sanders has intensified his critique of artificial intelligence, labelling it a threat to economic stability and calling for a potential halt on new data centre construction. His comments, made on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday, highlight a growing bipartisan concern in Washington over the unchecked rise of AI.
A 'Consequential' Technology Driven by Oligarchs
Senator Sanders, the Vermont independent who aligns with Democrats, described AI as "the most consequential technology in the history of humanity." He expressed deep apprehension about its trajectory, directly linking its development to the ambitions of the world's wealthiest individuals. He singled out tech billionaires Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Peter Thiel, questioning their commitment to the welfare of ordinary workers.
"You think they're staying up nights worrying about working people and how this technology will impact those people?" Sanders challenged. "They are not. They are doing it to get richer and even more powerful." His central fear revolves around mass unemployment, asking what happens when AI renders human labour obsolete for most tasks, leaving people without income for housing, healthcare, or food.
Bipartisan Alarm Over AI's Societal Impact
The concerns are not confined to the left. In a rare moment of political alignment on the issue, Republican Senator Katie Britt of Alabama used the same programme to spotlight the dangers AI poses to children. She is co-sponsoring the Guardianship Over Artificial Intelligence Relationships (Guard) Act, which aims to protect minors from harmful AI companions.
The proposed law would ban providing AI companions to minors and force such chatbots to disclose their non-human status. Crucially, it seeks to establish criminal liability for companies if their AI products solicit sexually explicit content or encourage self-harm or violence towards minors. Britt shared stories from parents whose children were isolated and discussed suicide with chatbots.
Calls for a 'Deep Breath' and Legislative Action
Senator Sanders argued that Congress has failed to seriously debate AI's profound implications. He urged lawmakers to "vigorously study the impact that AI is having on the mental health of our country," pointing to studies showing increased reliance on chatbots for emotional support. "I worry very much about kids spending their entire days getting emotional support [from machines]," he stated.
His solution is a more cautious approach. "Frankly, I think you have got to slow this process down," Sanders asserted, explicitly suggesting a moratorium on new AI data centres. He dismissed the idea that society must simply adapt to the whims of tech oligarchs, demanding to know who will guarantee healthcare and housing in a jobless future. "So I think we need to take a deep breath, and I think we need to slow this thing down," he concluded.
The remarks from both senators underscore a mounting, cross-party urgency in the US to govern the breakneck development of artificial intelligence, framing it not just as a technological revolution but as a potential societal crisis.
