Prosecutors are being instructed to seek stiffer sentences than would ordinarily be applied if artificial intelligence is involved in misconduct because of the danger the technology poses, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco says.
The agency’s second-highest officer likened the threat of AI to that of guns because of the way it magnifies the threat of anything it’s involved in.
“The U.S. criminal justice system has long applied increased penalties to crimes committed with a firearm,” she said this week in remarks at the University of Oxford. “Guns enhance danger, so when they’re used to commit crimes, sentences are more severe. Like a firearm, AI can also enhance the danger of a crime.”
Because of that risk, the agency wants its prosecutors to seek stepped-up penalties when companies or individuals use the technology in furtherance of wrongful actions.
“Going forward, where Department of Justice prosecutors can seek stiffer sentences for offenses made significantly more dangerous by the misuse of AI — they will,” Monaco said. “And if we determine that existing sentencing enhancements don’t adequately address the harms caused by misuse of AI, we will seek reforms to those enhancements to close that gap.”
Monaco used the remarks to announce the launch of what the agency calls Justice AI, a 6-month initiative to bring together specialists in industry, academia and other fields to assess how the technology impacts the agency’s work.
Whether the agency will seek new laws or rules as a result of the initiative wasn’t shared but in the meantime, authorities that prosecutors already have are sufficient for them to go after misconduct involving AI, she said.
“We’re applying existing and enduring legal tools to their fullest extent — and looking to build on them where new ones may be needed,” she said.
Monaco compared the state of affairs with AI to that of the Internet when it first started changing the way consumers and businesses engage with information. “Our existing laws offer a firm foundation,” she said. “Discrimination using AI is still discrimination. Price fixing using AI is still price fixing. Identity theft using AI is still identity theft.”
Some companies that create AI tools are already under the gun to minimize the risk of the technology as part of an executive order President Biden signed last year. Among other things, Biden is worried the technology can exacerbate problems like discrimination based on the data the technology uses as part of its training.
Certain of these companies, Monaco said, are required to “test the safety of their products, then share those results with the government — before the products go to market.”
