In a new episode of the Washington AI Network Podcast, host Tammy Haddad interviews Ylli Bajraktari, president and CEO of the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP), on the critical need for the United States to maintain its leadership in artificial intelligence (AI) innovation for national security.
The SCSP is a bipartisan, non-profit initiative founded by former Google chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt to identify recommendations to strengthen America’s long-term competitiveness for a future where AI and other emerging technologies reshape our national security, economy, and society.
Bajraktari – the former executive director of the U.S. government’s National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence and the former chief of staff to National Security Advisor LTG H.R. McMaster – shares concerns about the security implications posed by Chinese apps, particularly TikTok.
Voicing apprehension over the influence of Chinese platforms in the American digital ecosystem, Bajraktari states, “China has deployed globally a set of platforms to dominate our digital life.” He expresses particular concern about TikTok, noting its origin in a country he views as a major competitor to the United States across various domains, including politics, economics, and military competition. He questions the allowance of such platforms to operate freely within American society, strongly advocating for their ban on national security grounds.
Bajraktari highlights the need for the U.S. to revamp its institutions to counter the comprehensive competition posed by China, citing China’s outsized dominance of global 5G map and the infrastructure the Chinese built and deployed while the U.S. lagged behind. He issues a strong warning to prevent other countries from gaining similar technological dominance in the future, stressing the importance of maintaining control over critical technologies to protect both our national security interests and economic prosperity.
Bajraktari also previewed the SCSP’s upcoming AI Expo for National Competitiveness on May 7-8 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., which aims to bring together the private sector and government to foster innovation and collaboration in AI technologies. Bajraktari has called for the U.S. military to be AI combat-ready by 2025, emphasizing the significance of software supremacy and the integration of AI into military operations. The expo will feature main stage programming, exhibitions from leading AI developers and stakeholders, and roundtable conversations at the Ash Carter Exchange. Stay tuned for Washington AI Network podcast recordings from inside the AI Expo. Registration is free and open to the public. Click here to register and learn more.
The post SCSP CEO Ylli Bajraktari Calls on U.S. to be AI Combat-Ready, Warns of Dangers from TikTok, Chinese Apps appeared first on White House Correspondents Insider.