Newsweek is reporting that the most powerful technology executives in the United States gathered in the East Room of the White House on Tuesday to sign the "White House Accord on Super Intelligence." It said President Donald Trump described the document, in which the signatories effectively pledge to responsibly develop frontier artificial intelligence, as "almost like a constitution."
Newsweek said Trump also praised the industry's capacity for "tremendous self-policing" and declared the agreement "morally binding." In its commentary, Newsweek argued that morality is a concept AI is fundamentally unable to conceive and is perhaps the last word one might associate with corporate America's boardrooms. It said morality is being used to regulate the development of one of the most transformative and potentially devastating tools the world has ever known.
In a separate item, Newsweek reported that competition with China is driving an unusually broad consensus across Capitol Hill about artificial intelligence legislation.
Newsweek also reported that a nationwide backlash over data centers is forcing candidates onto unfamiliar political ground.
In a note to readers, Newsweek Editor-in-Chief Jennifer H. Cunningham said there is no shortage of news, but that trustworthy news is harder to find. She said the outlet follows facts, not factions, and believes readers should be free to make up their own minds.