America’s crypto and AI czar David Sacks says the biggest risk AI poses is not a Terminator-style revolt, but rather a dystopian future in which AI spies on the population and controls what information people see.
Speaking on a Monday episode of a16z’s podcast, The Ben & Marc Show, Sacks discussed the Trump administration’s approach to crypto and AI regulation.
Sacks criticized the previous administration led by former US President Joe Biden, as well as current “blue states” like California and Colorado, for their “heavy-handed” approach to AI consumer protection laws aimed at combatting “algorithmic discrimination.”
The crypto and AI czar argued that excessive regulation can shape AI tools to suit the government’s ideological biases, which can then be used to distort information and facts if they do not fit particular agendas.
“What we’re really talking about is an Orwellian AI. We’re talking about an AI that lies to you, that distorts an answer, that rewrites history in real time to serve the current political agenda of the people in power,” he said, adding:
“On top of that, there is the issue of surveillance. The AI will know everything about you. It will be your personal assistant, in a way, and therefore the perfect tool for the government to monitor and control you. And for me, that is by far the biggest risk of AI.”
Sacks also stressed the importance of punishing those who abuse technology, rather than regulating the tools themselves or the companies that create them.
He argued that excessive regulation would make it difficult for AI companies to comply because it is almost impossible to know all the ways people will use AI. He also suggested that there are already laws in place to punish abuse, such as anti-discrimination laws.
“Presumably discrimination is already illegal, so if you’re already responsible for it… We don’t really need to sue the developer of the tool because we can already sue the company (user) that made that decision,” he said.
Crypto vs. AI Regulation
While Sacks emphasized a more hands-off approach to AI to promote innovation and win the AI race, he reiterated that the Trump administration is “pro-regulation” on crypto and wants to establish clear rules to support the industry.
“With AI, the idea is ‘how do we unlock innovation,’ and with crypto I think it’s more about ‘how do we create regulatory certainty,’” he said.
