Asilomar For AI
By
Leonard Zwelling
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/11/opinion/ai-populism-china-open-source.html
There is rarely a day when either The New York Times (above from July 13), The Wall Street Journal, or both don’t publish an opinion piece about AI, its potential economic benefits, its potential dangers to humanity, and the fact that the genie is already out of the bottle.
OK, let’s say for a moment that all of this is correct. AI has both great upside and downside potential consequences. What would be the best way for the United States and the world to meet AI head on in an attempt to reap the benefits and minimize the harms?
In 1975, molecular biologists from all over the country were called to a critical conference in Asilomar, California to discuss the potential benefits and risks of experiments using the newly discovered recombinant DNA technology. The below attachment is the Wikipedia page about this crucial moment in molecular science.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asilomar_Conference_on_Recombinant_DNA)
In essence, at the behest of the National Academy of Sciences, Paul Berg and Maxine Singer led the conference which formulated guidelines for the safe performance of recombinant DNA research that are still in effect 50 years later. The Asilomar Conference showed the way to address potentially earth-shattering and life-threatening technology using collective wisdom. What a concept!
For at least the last year and perhaps more, as the articles about the risks and benefits of AI have rolled out, I have advocated for an Asilomar Conference for AI led by the leaders of the tech industry, government regulators, elected politicians, and representatives of communities impacted by data farms and their drains on the power grid and water usage. Of course, with leadership like we have in Washington right now, this has not occurred and it has been a free-for-all with regard to who will make the most money from AI vs. who will lose the most jobs.
However, since no one seems to have an answer to how to address what AI may do to society and to all the people in the world, perhaps an international Asilomar Conference should be suggested by President Trump. I am sure he will want to lead it, but he has no idea what he is doing in this area and I am seriously concerned that anyone in his cabinet does either. Having it led by the “tech bros” like Musk and Zuckerberg is an equally terrible idea.
My suggestion is that Michael Kratsios, the president’s science advisor request that the National Academy of Sciences approach the science leadership in China and all the other countries performing AI work and lead an international meeting with the goal of establishing guardrails for AI use, rules to protect jobs while promoting commerce and trade, and how to keep AI from being used as a weapon of war.
I understand that such a suggestion under this White House, not to mention the cut-throat competition in Silicon Valley to “win” the AI battle, may be naïve. On the other hand, Asilomar showed that this approach can work, advance science, create the whole biotech industry, and avert human catastrophe.
What would be the harm of giving this a try? It might allay the fears of the younger generation that there will be no entry level jobs for them. It could eliminate the threat of AI to the impressionable young by making it illegal to use the technology to harm kids by becoming their non-human friends.
Until all the AI stake-holders, and that is everyone, have representatives in the same room discussing the impact of the technology and creating rules that will have the force of law to promote benefits and decrease risks, the constant drip, drip, drip of op-ed suggestions will go on without demonstrable effect.
The United States ought to take the lead on this, but be very inclusive. Everyone is invited because everyone will be affected by AI.
This approach has kept the world safe from the potential of bioterrorism using recombinant DNA technology (unless that’s what you think Covid-19 was, and who knows? Ask Tony Fauci, but it is unlikely he will answer.) It’s time for an AI Asilomar now.
