American workers ‘can’t afford to wait’ on federal AI legislation, groups say - HR Dive

Nearly two years since the Bipartisan Senate AI Working Group released its roadmap, and the Senate has yet to consider comprehensive legislation. 'Can't afford to wait,' say groups — a sentiment that would be poignant if the US political class had shown any capacity for urgency on AI since... well, ever. The House Democratic Commission on AI is now being called upon to 'center the impacts of AI on workers,' which is like asking a committee to remember the front-line staff after the robots have already taken their desks.

The Commission, presumably still occupied with the weighty task of deciding which shade of beige the report cover should be, is now expected to pivot to the plight of the worker. Meanwhile, companies deploy AI at a clip that would make a Silicon Valley hype man blush, and the only thing standing between a cashier and obsolescence is some poor junior staffer's PowerPoint about 'stakeholder engagement.' The roadmap was supposed to be a start; it has become a tombstone.

So here we are, nearly two years later, with a Senate that hasn't even read the bill, a Commission that's being asked to care, and workers who — spoiler alert — still can't afford to wait. The gallows humour practically writes itself: the AI revolution will not be legislated, it will be complained about in a subcommittee meeting that no one attends. Cheers to progress, or whatever's left of it.