Cold War lessons for the AI era

Hawkish fears about falling behind China are helping to drive forward American AI development. However, some scholars, activists, and proponents of AI regulation warn the race between the two countries could get out of hand. They fear that, in a blind rush to get ahead, both are creating systems that could eventually pose cataclysmic risks with few guardrails. So how do we preserve the productive benefits of competition while ensuring that this technology is built and used responsibly? There’s a growing body of literature and even a few initiatives that have looked to the Cold War for answers.