Tech bills of the week: AI research competitions; Prohibiting federal use of biometric tech; and more

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Incentivizing AI research

A bipartisan House measure introduced on Wednesday looks to create federally-funded research competitions to enhance AI security and understanding of the technologies.

Led by Reps. August Pfluger, R-Texas, and Josh Harder, D-Calif., the Reliable Artificial Intelligence Research Act would create two national competitions operated by the Department of Homeland Security focused on AI interpretability and adversarial robustness. The legislation would set aside $10 million in prizes to award through the national competitions over the next five years.

"As AI becomes more deeply woven into our economy and our national defense, we cannot afford to leave it vulnerable to those who would exploit it,” Pfluger said in a statement. “Adversaries are already looking for ways to manipulate these systems, and we must stay ahead of them. The Reliable Artificial Intelligence Research Act puts American ingenuity to work on making AI more transparent, more predictable, and more resistant to...

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