Why Europe Must Not Let AI Firms Put Profits Before People

The soap opera-like ousting and swift return of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman produced plenty of fodder for ironic quips online but it also exposed some serious fault lines. One such critique I enjoyed was: "How are we supposed to solve the AI alignment problem if aligning just a few board members presents an insurmountable challenge?" As the company behind ChatGPT, OpenAI may be one of the more recognizable names, but artificial intelligence is more than one company. It's a technology of immense consequence, yet it remains almost entirely unregulated. The E.U. has a chance to meaningfully tackle that challenge--but not if it bends the knee to Big Tech's ongoing onslaught. Inspirational Members of the European Parliament have so far been standing firm in the face of incredible pressure, in an effort to save this landmark legislation.