A Critical Look at Critical Infrastructure
As policymakers put pen to paper to “do something” on AI, an increasingly common theme is “critical infrastructure (CI).” 180 days out from the AI executive order this emphasis is on full display. Just days ago, Homeland Security debuted a new AI Safety and Security Board to set a course towards the “safe and secure development and deployment of AI technology in our nation’s critical infrastructure.” While boards and committees are common, this effort is no joke. Here we see the full force of the administration’s rolodex. Membership includes OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Nvidias’ Jensen Huang, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella; an AI industry who’s who.
This is just the tip of the CI iceberg. This week, CISA followed up with more, issuing its official safety guidelines for critical infrastructure operators. Legislation is also in progress. In November, a bipartisan collection of six senators released a bill to regulate certain uses of AI in critical infrastructure. Meanwhile in California, SB 1047 would mandate AI developers ensure certain AI systems cannot enable infrastructure attacks. Picking up on the energy, OpenAI has even begun messaging AI as the “next critical infrastructure.” This narrative has force, and industry is leaning in.
This flurry of action is no surprise. Our most critical systems, including the grid, water, pipelines, etc. often have little room for error, and when disaster strikes the impacts can be profound. Certain systems have to work. Perhaps CI represents a well-targeted, lowest common regulatory denominator.
