The AI Policy Podcast

In this episode, we are joined by Matt Sheehan, fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. We discuss the evolution of China's AI policymaking process over the past decade (6:45), the key institutions shaping Chinese AI policy today (44:30), and the changing nature of China's attitude to AI safety (50:55). 

In this episode, we discuss AI companies' responses to the White House AI Action Plan Request For Information (RFI) related to key areas like export controls and AI governance (00:51), the release of the Joint California Policy Working Group on AI Frontier Models draft report (24:45), and how AI might be affecting the computer programming job market (40:10). 

In this episode of the AI Policy Podcast, Wadhwani AI Center Director Gregory C. Allen is joined by Dean Ball, Research Fellow in the Artificial Intelligence & Progress Project at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center. They will discuss how state and local governments are approaching AI regulation, what factors are shaping these efforts, where state and local efforts intersect, and how a fractured approach to governance might affect the AI policy landscape.

In addition to his role at the George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, Dean Ball is the author of the Substack Hyperdimensional. Previously, he was Senior Program Manager for the Hoover Institution's State and Local Governance Initiative. Prior to his position at the Hoover Institution, he served as Executive Director of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, based in Plymouth, Vermont and Washington, D.C. He also worked as the Deputy Director of State and Local Policy at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research from 2014–2018.

In this episode, we discuss the Wadhwani AI Center’s latest publication on the implications of DeepSeek for the future of export controls (0:40), Chinese company Manus AI (9:05), what Secretary Hegseth’s memo means for the DOD AI ecosystem (15:27), and xAI’s acquisition of 1 million square feet for its new data center in Memphis (21:28). 

In this special episode, we are joined by Georgia Adamson, Research Associate at the CSIS Wadhwani AI Center, Lennart Heim, Associate Information Scientist at RAND, and Sam Winter-Levy, Fellow for Technology and International Affairs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. We outline the biggest takeaways from our recent report about the UAE's role in the global AI race (2:34), the details of the Microsoft-G42 deal (17:21), our assessment of the UAE-China relationship when it comes to AI technology (25:45), and the future of export controls (44:07).

In our first video episode, we discuss xAI's release of the Grok 3 family of models, the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) impact on the federal AI workforce, Xi Jinping's meeting with major Chinese AI company executives, and what the Evo-2 model could mean for the future of biology. 

In this special episode, Greg breaks down his biggest takeaways from the Paris AI Action Summit. He discusses France’s goals for the summit (5:05), Vice President JD Vance’s speech about the US vision for AI (12:16), the EU’s approach to the convening (17:13), why the US and UK did not sign the summit declaration (20:50), and the rebranded UK AI Security Institute (23:20).

In this crossover episode with Truth of the Matter, we discuss the origins of Chinese AI Company DeepSeek (0:55), the release of its DeepSeek R1 model and what it means for the future of U.S.- China AI competition (3:05), why it prompted such a massive reaction by U.S. policymakers and the U.S. stock market (14:04), and the Trump administration's response (24:03)  

In this episode, we break down President Trump's repeal of the the Biden administration's Executive Order (EO) on AI (1:00), the release of the America First Trade Policy memorandum (9:52), and the Trump administration's own AI EO (15:02). We are then joined by Lennart Heim, Senior Information Scientist at the RAND Corporation to discuss the Stargate announcement (20:40), how AI company CEOs are talking about AGI (38:36), and why the latest models from DeepSeek matter (52:02).

In this special episode of the AI Policy Podcast, Andrew, Greg, and CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program Director Joseph Majkut discuss the Biden administration's Executive Order on Advancing United States Leadership in Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure. They consider the motivation for this measure and its primary goals (1:07), its reception among AI and hyperscaler companies (12:18), and how the Trump administration might approach AI and energy (17:50). 

In this pressing episode, we break down the release of the Biden administration's Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion. We discuss the rationale for this latest control (0:52), and its reception among major AI and semiconductor firms (8:14), U.S. allies (17:15), and the incoming administration (19:48). 

In this episode, we discuss the December 2nd semiconductor export control update (0:45), the Trump administration’s appointment of David Sacks as the White House AI czar (5:35), the OpenAI and Anduril partnership and its implication for national security (9:31), and the latest from China’s autonomous fighter aircraft program (16:39).  

On this special episode, Wadhwani AI Center director Gregory C. Allen is joined by Dr. Ben Buchanan, the White House Special Advisor for AI. They discuss the Biden administration's biggest AI policy achievements including the AI Bill of Rights, the AI Safety Institute, and the Hiroshima AI process, and the National Security Memorandum on AI.

On this special episode, New York Times reporter Ana Swanson is joined by Neil Chilson, Head of AI Policy at The Abundance Institute, Kara Frederick, Director, Tech Policy Center at The Heritage Foundation, and Brandon Pugh, Director and Senior Fellow, Cybersecurity and Emerging Threats at R Street Institute. They discuss what we can expect from the incoming Trump administration when it comes to AI policy. 

In this episode, we are joined by Alondra Nelson, the Harold F. Linder Chair in the School of Social Science at the Institute of Advanced Study, and the former acting director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). We discuss her background in AI policy (1:30), the Blueprint for the AI Bill of Rights (9:43), its relationship to the White House Executive Order on AI (23:47), the Senate AI Insight Forums (29:55), the European approach to AI governance (29:55), state-level AI regulation (41:20), and how the incoming administration should approach AI policy (47:04).

In this episode, we discuss recent reporting that so called "scaling laws" are slowing and the potential implications for the policy community (0:37), the latest models coming out of the China AI ecosystem (12:37), the U.S. China - Economic Security Review Commission recommendation for a Manhattan Project for AI (19:02), and the biggest takeaways from the first draft of the European Union's General Purpose AI Code of Practice (25:46)

https://www.csis.org/analysis/eu-code-practice-general-purpose-ai-key-takeaways-first-draft

https://www.csis.org/analysis/ai-safety-institute-international-network-next-steps-and-recommendations

https://www.csis.org/analysis/understanding-military-ai-ecosystem-ukraine

https://www.csis.org/events/international-ai-policy-outlook-2025

Correction: hyperscalers Meta, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon are expected to invest $300 billion in AI and AI infrastructure in 2025.

In this episode we are joined by Vilas Dhar, President and Trustee of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, a 21st century $1.5 billion philanthropy advancing AI and data solutions to create a thriving, equitable, and sustainable future for all. We discuss his background (1:26), the foundation and its approach to AI philanthropy (4:11), building public sector capacity in AI (13:00), the definition of AI governance (20:07), ongoing multilateral governance efforts (23:01), how liberal and authoritarian norms affect AI (28:35), and what the future of AI might look like (30:30).

In this episode, we discuss what AI policy might look like under the second Trump administration. We dive into the first Trump administration's achievements (0:50), how the Trump campaign handled AI policy (3:37), and where the new administration might fall on key issue areas like national security (5:59), safety (7:37), export controls (11:27), open-source (14:04), and more. 

In this special episode, we discuss the National Security Memorandum on AI the Biden administration released on October 24th, its primary audience and main objectives, and what the upcoming U.S. election could mean for its implementation. 

On this special episode, Wadhwani AI Center director Gregory C. Allen is joined by Schuyler Moore, the first-ever Chief Technology Officer of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), Justin Fanelli, the Chief Technology Officer of the Department of the Navy, and Dr. Alex Miller, the Chief Technology Officer for the Chief of Staff of the Army for a discussion on the warfighter's adoption of emerging technologies. They discuss how U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), in conjunction with the Army and Navy, has been driving the use of AI and other advanced technologies through a series of exercises such as Desert Sentry, Digital Falcon Oasis, Desert Guardian, and Project Convergence.