Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), a hardliner in the House and a proponent of limited government, said in an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Friday that he feels Congress has an oversight role when it comes to artificial intelligence.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean he thinks legislators should be required to regulate technology.
“I don’t want to regulate anything,” Roy said. “I’m a free market conservative. I’m a limited government conservative.”
Instead, Roy said he would support AI CEOs testifying at Congressional hearings and explaining what they are doing to address safety concerns.
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, speaks during a press conference on federal spending at the Capitol on September 12, 2023 in Washington.
Elizabeth Franz | Reuters
“Our federal form of government, our Republican form of government, has a perfect role to play in getting Congress to come to them and explain what they’re doing for something that’s so pervasive,” Roy said.
Roy, who is scheduled to leave the House at the end of this year after an unsuccessful bid for Texas attorney general, has become part of a growing group of lawmakers speaking out about AI in recent weeks after a former Anthropic employee posted a disturbing message about the existential threat of rapidly evolving technology. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for additional AI regulation as part of a broader economic slowdown in an essay published last week. Other leaders at major AI companies echoed Amodei’s sentiments, including OpenAI’s Sam Altman and xAI’s Elon Musk.
At an event this week hosted by the Future of Life Institute, a nonprofit that advocates for countering large-scale technological risks, Mr. Roy joined an unlikely group of colleagues on stage, including progressives such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (R-Vt.), Rep. Greg Cassar (D-Texas) and former White House strategist Steve Bannon.
While there is bipartisan concern about the pace of AI development, there is little consensus on how the federal government should respond. The House left Washington on Wednesday without taking any major action on AI safety. The Senate will remain in session for two more weeks, after which members will return to their districts for a pre-election recess.
President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) have both argued that the United States could lose the AI race if it slows down China’s development. President Trump went further, calling potential AI threats a “hoax” and opposing regulation. Meanwhile, progressives like Sanders are pushing for stricter guardrails and a ban on AI “superintelligence.”
Speaking at the Future of Life Institute conference, Roy pushed back on Trump’s argument that the president should be the only one making decisions regarding AI. But he also disagrees with his Democratic colleagues, saying in an appearance on CNBC on Friday that he is not a “ruiner” of AI.
“We have a responsibility to protect our communities and protect lives. I want competition and free enterprise to rule. I don’t want crony capitalism and crony government interference,” Roy said.
