Ex-President Barack Obama has urged the Democratic Party to position artificial intelligence at the core of their political platform and establish a well-defined strategy to tackle its economic and safety risks, as reported by The New York Times.
Speaking on Thursday during a Democratic fundraiser hosted alongside House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Obama shared his thoughts when asked how lawmakers in Congress should navigate the rise of AI. The NYT noted that a partial transcript of their discussion was made available by Obama’s team.
Addressing the topic, Obama emphasized that if Democrats regain control of the House, their priority should be designing a framework to foster an open, national dialogue.
“Private companies are advancing this technology at an unprecedented pace, and failing to manage it properly could pose serious risks,” Obama remarked. “However, if we stay ahead of it, the potential advantages are immense—such as drastically speeding up pharmaceutical research to cure diseases.”
In a follow-up statement, Jeffries echoed the former president’s sentiments, agreeing that urgent steps are required to manage AI. He further criticized political opponents, asserting that Republicans have abandoned their duty to govern for the public good.
According to the NYT, Obama has also acted as an advisor to tech leaders, consulting with Anthropic chief Dario Amodei and OpenAI leader Sam Altman. These discussions occur during heightened anxiety over AI safety, especially following the resignation of an AI researcher from Anthropic who warned that top firms are recklessly rushing toward autonomous superintelligence.
Over the weekend, Amodei proposed a comprehensive strategy for managing AI advancement, advocating for third-party safety assessors to be granted access to major models and establishing unified safety benchmarks across the sector. Key industry figures like Sam Altman and SpaceX’s Elon Musk reacted favorably online, with Altman confirming that OpenAI supports providing independent monitors deep system access.
“We can implement safety measures if needed,” Trump stated. “We can take various actions, but I feel many critics are raising alarmist concerns unnecessarily.”
