On June 10, a coalition of more than 20 technology safety and whistleblower advocacy groups sent a letter to Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, calling for the passage of the AI Whistleblower Protection Act.
The bipartisan bill, introduced by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) last month, provides anti-retaliation protections to AI insiders reporting safety concerns to regulators or supervisors and is widely supported by whistleblower advocates.
“The AI Whistleblower Protection Act helps ensure that those working to develop and deploy AI systems are not punished for acting in the best interest of the public,” the letter states. “Strong whistleblower protections are a cornerstone of responsible governance and essential to guiding AI development in a way that upholds our shared democratic values.”
“Congress has the opportunity to protect individuals who come forward in good faith and to reinforce the principle that safety, ethics, and accountability must accompany innovation,” the letter continues. “Whistleblowers serve a valuable and necessary role in Congressional oversight, and in an age where AI systems influence everything from elections to defense systems, their protections are more urgent than ever.”
“Whistleblowers provide an early warning alarm system for AI risks,” said Brad Carson, president of Americans for Responsible Innovation (ARI) of the signees of the letter.. “While some tech companies may want to take the battery out of that alarm system, this bill protects whistleblowers to make sure their warnings come through loud and clear. We’ve seen the power of whistleblowers in helping to deliver transparency and accountability for social media companies, and their role will be just as vital in the AI era.”
Last week, Senator Grassley appeared on “A Starting Point” to discuss the AI Whistleblower Protection Act. He stated the bill “will bring transparency and accountability to the artificial intelligence sector before it’s too late.”
Over the past year, advocates, including the National Whistleblower Center (NWC) a signee of the letter, have called on Congress to pass an AI whistleblower bill, noting that AI safety whistleblowers do not have industry-specific whistleblower protections afforded to other whistleblowers, such as nuclear safety or airline safety whistleblowers.
NWC has set up an Action Alert allowing supporters to write to Congress demanding the passage of the AI Whistleblower Protection Act.
Join NWC in Taking Action:
Call For the Passage of the AI Whistleblower Protection Act
Further Reading:
Congress Must Pass AI Whistleblower Protections, Advocates Urge
