Good morning and welcome to our first weekly Nimitz Tech newsletter, where we will be tracking all the latest news in Congress and around the world related to technology policy. We hope you had a restful August recess while we were working on this project to help you stay on top of technology-related news, hearings, and events. Here is what we’re watching as Congress comes back from summer recess…
In this week’s Nimitz Tech:
- Congressional Hearings: Congress will hold three hearings this week examining technology’s critical role in US space operations, advancing the military prowess of foreign powers, and the government’s capacity to conduct appropriate advanced computing research.
- Higher Prices for LLMs: As the AI race heats up, some providers are considering dramatically increasing user costs.
- Colossus: Elon Musk launches the world’s largest Supercomputer powered by Nvidia GPUs.
- Starliner: How will the failed Boeing project impact the US Space Program?
🤖 Autonomous Weapons: The Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) is struggling to make meaningful progress towards regulating autonomous weapons due to opposition from some member states.
EVENTS THIS WEEK
Tuesday, September 10th
- 🚀 HEARING: “Risks and Rewards: Encouraging Commercial Space Innovation While Maintaining Public Safety,”House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics. Hearing scheduled for 10:00 AM in 2318 Rayburn HOB. Watch here.
- 🕹️ HEARING: “To examine US companies’ technology fueling the Russian war machine,” Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Subcommittee on Investigations. Hearing scheduled for 2:00 PM in 342 Dirksen SOB. Watch here.
Thursday, September 12th
- 💻HEARING: “To examine the Department of Energy’s role in conducting advanced computing research, application, and security.” Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearing scheduled for 10:00 AM in 366 Dirksen SOB. Watch here.
WHAT ELSE WE’RE WATCHING 👀
Monday, September 9th -Tuesday, September 10th
- The promise and perils of AI: Issues at stake in the 2024 election. The Brookings Institution and Spelman College. 9/9: 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. EDT & 9/10: 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. EDT. RSVP here.
NEWS DRIVING THIS WEEK
Tech News – In Washington
- Over 140 immigrant and civil rights groups are urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to suspend its use of artificial intelligence, arguing that its deployment violates federal rules and executive orders. The groups’ letter highlights AI systems used by Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and other DHS components, including biometric surveillance and predictive algorithms. Concerns focus on the lack of transparency, potential biases, and the impact of AI on life-changing immigration decisions. DHS responded that it is committed to using AI responsibly, safeguarding privacy and civil rights, and meeting federal AI governance requirements. The groups, led by Just Futures Law, stress that the human oversight claimed by DHS is insufficient to mitigate AI biases and discrimination.
Tech News – US
- OpenAI is considering subscription prices as high as $2,000 per month for its upcoming large language models, Strawberry and Orion, significantly higher than the current $20 per month for ChatGPT Plus, bringing into question how this new era in tech could exacerbate societal inequities by pricing out those who could most benefit from these tools. The new models, expected to be released in the fall, will have advanced capabilities, including solving complex math problems, developing market strategies, and conducting deep research beyond current AI models.
- Elon Musk’s AI startup, xAI, has launched a new supercomputer called Colossus, located in Tennessee, to train its large language model Grok, a competitor to OpenAI’s GPT-4. Colossus, equipped with 100,000 Nvidia H100 processors, is the most powerful AI training system in the world, with plans to double its capacity soon. Musk aims for Grok to eventually power Tesla’s humanoid robot, Optimus, with the potential to earn $1 trillion annually for Tesla. However, concerns have been raised about the strain on Memphis’s resources due to the supercomputer’s significant water and power demands.
- Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft successfully landed in New Mexico after a three-month uncrewed test mission, which faced significant technical issues that prevented the astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) from returning with it. NASA deemed Starliner’s thrusters too risky for crew use, forcing astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to stay on the ISS until February 2025, extending their mission from eight days to eight months. Despite the clean landing, Starliner’s path to certification remains uncertain due to past propulsion failures and ongoing investigations costing Boeing $125 million. The failed thrusters burned up in the atmosphere, leaving Boeing to rely on simulations to diagnose the hardware issues. The mission underscores Boeing’s struggles in space as it faces increasing competition from SpaceX, which has reshaped NASA’s approach to working with private companies as the government has largely privatized space operations resulting in reduced oversight and increased risk.
Tech News – International
- The Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) met in Geneva to develop “a set of elements of an instrument” to address LAWS, but significant disagreements, particularly among powerful states like the US, Russia, and China, hindered progress. The discussions were hampered by debates over characterizations of LAWS and conflicting positions on prohibitions and regulations, with minority states often blocking broader consensus. Frustrations grew as new draft language weakened previous versions, and important considerations such as international human rights law were sidelined. The meeting highlighted the dominance of militarized states in the consensus-based process, preventing meaningful outcomes. The urgency to establish a legally binding instrument by 2026 was underscored, but the ongoing delays favor those states developing autonomous weapons.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Technology moves at the pace of research and development. Policy moves at the pace of consensus. And that is by design.”
Arati Prabhakar, (September 6, 2024) (hyperlink here)
FOR FUN
- Looking for a fresh perspective? Check out A Night in Paris at the National Gallery Nights to take in one of our nation’s greatest art collections. Thursday, September 12, 2024. 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. in the east building. Register here.
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Additionally, if you are interested in our original publication on veterans affairs policy, check it out here.