Well-known policy experts and veterans of the artificial intelligence (AI) world have been advocating for the nationalization of AI infrastructure. While these concerns may be legitimate, the policy prescriptions would repeat mistakes that have stifled innovation in the past. Many experts are generally optimistic about the future, and one predicts an “AI dividend” if algorithms can be aligned with “humanity’s interest.” Researchers also refute the canard that AI development needs to be “paused” and one offers the Atomic Energy Commission model as an alternative. Under that model, the federal government would own the infrastructure and the private sector would operate it. The historical record shows that we should embrace the opposite approach: unfettered experimentation driven by market demand with a light-touch regulatory framework. The Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) itself serves as a cautionary tale against nationalization. Established just after the Second World War in 1946, the AEC took control of all the plants, laboratories, equipment and personnel assembled during the war to produce the atomic bomb and worked with the private sector to build more bombs and explore peaceful applications. This partnership was not successful. The government prioritized developing nuclear weapons over peaceful electricity generation, which could have reduced costs to consumers to near zero over time.
Full opinion : History shows that nationalizing AI will likely suffocate US innovation.
