A new executive order concerning artificial intelligence usage in the US will likely (and inevitably) reverberate through games in the near future.
The Biden administration has given its first executive order for artificial intelligence. Per CNBC, this represents "the strongest set of actions any government in the world has ever taken on AI safety, security, and trust," according to White House Deputy Chief of Staff Bruce Reed.
AI has been a divisive issue across multiple mediums, including entertainment and games specifically. Throughout 2023, the technology has greatly affected parts of the industry such as voice acting, art, and writing. At this moment, voice actors want protections against AI (among other things), and are ready to strike should game developers not agree to their terms.
Divided into eight parts, the executive order calls for new safety and security standards for AI, such as requiring companies to share safety test results with the government and helping the Commerce Department create guidance for AI watermarking. It also calls for guidelines to be made for evaluating AI privacy techniques.
One of the bigger demands is a report on how AI would affect the larger labor market, and exploring how the federal government could support disrupted workers. The executive order has also called for collaboration with international partners to establish larger AI standards for around the world.
This move comes months after tech companies such as Google and Meta came together to establish their own AI safeguards. The companies pledged to full transparency with the government (and general public), and their agreements cover some similar territory.
But as the Biden administration told CNBC, those voluntary commitments are "not enough," and this is a more real step towards concrete AI regulation, whose steps will be felt for years to come.
AI's place in the game industry (and how developers use said technology) is still being determined by both developers and players alike. Like in the film and TV industries, working around it (or using it to one's advantage) as best as possible seems to be the only real solution, since outright eliminating it is no longer viable.
All eight parts of the executive order can be read here.
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