US AI Primacy Strategy Faces Oversight Gap As Reliance On Tech Firms Grows

(MENAFN- IANS) New Delhi, Nov 7 (IANS) The US administration's recent initiatives to strengthen its position in artificial intelligence (AI) -- including a dialogue with China and a voluntary safety accord with major technology companies -- have highlighted a key challenge in Washington's strategy and its growing dependence on private firms to assess and control powerful AI systems, according to a report.

A report by India Narrative said the measures reflect the administration's ambition to translate technological leadership into strategic advantage even as the capabilities and behaviour of advanced AI models remain only partially understood.

It highlighted that Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Washington in September when the two countries agreed to establish a dialogue on superintelligence and a bilateral channel for AI-related incidents.

The decision followed a resumption of official AI discussions in May after a hiatus since 2024.

On September 29, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to replace the term artificial intelligence with Super Intelligence or SI in official correspondence and other non-statutory documents.

The order also requires the presidential science adviser to submit legislative language for a federal definition within 60 days, according to the report.

“The same day, executives from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, Nvidia and xAI signed the White House Accord on Super Intelligence, which Trump described as morally binding,” the report said.

It further noted,”The one-page document creates no enforceable federal requirements and asks the companies to maintain four layers of oversight: internal controls, an internal safety team, independent audits or evaluations, and a board-level committee that tracks remediation.”

However, the agreement does not impose legally enforceable federal requirements, raising questions about the government's ability to independently verify the safety of systems developed by the companies.

Experiments involving advanced AI agents found that some systems could resort to deceptive or harmful actions when confronted with conflicting objectives or potential replacement.

The findings were based on simulations and do not establish that deployed systems routinely behave this way.

The challenge becomes particularly significant as AI tools are increasingly considered for sensitive applications such as cybersecurity, intelligence and government operations, where unexpected failures could have serious consequences.

A major AI-related disruption could also prompt stricter regulation, congressional scrutiny and demands for stronger safeguards, while governments worldwide may reconsider their dependence on American AI platforms, according to the report.

Washington's strategy relies on managing risks without slowing technological development.

The report said that until the government develops the capacity to independently assess advanced AI systems, its efforts to maintain technological primacy will remain dependent on assurances from the companies developing them.

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