Cary Coglianese (U Pennsylvania Carey Law) and Colton R. Crum (U Notre Dame) have posted “On Leashing (and Unleashing) AI Innovation” on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
The way that analysts and policymakers conceive of regulatory tools can color their decisions about how to govern artificial intelligence. To date, policy discourse surrounding the governance of artificial intelligence (AI) has been predominantly framed around a debate over whether and how to impose “guardrails” on the development and deployment of AI. Regulation conceived as guardrails suggests that standard-setters should be seeking fixed rules and mandates to be imposed on AI firms or placed on certain uses of AI. Such a vision, though, risks creating policies that impose undue barriers on innovation that benefits society. We propose an alternative way of conceiving regulation, one that allows AI innovation to flourish while still, importantly, assuring it remains under attentive human oversight. We urge replacing calls for “guardrails” with calls for “leashes.” Building on an analogy of AI to animal intelligence, we draw out implications for an alternative conception of AI governance that demands that AI developers and users seek to identify risks and develop robust internal practices to manage them. Just as pet owners are expected by law in many jurisdictions to keep their dogs on leashes when walking them in public spaces, we argue in favor of management-based regulations that direct firms to keep a grip on their AI tools by using effective leashing strategies. We explain how conceiving AI governance in terms of leashes holds virtues that governance as guardrails does not. Leashes, after all, are flexible and adaptable. Just as with a physical leash used to take a dog for a walk, AI leashes allow for technological innovation to meander and explore new terrain. But leashes nevertheless keep AI tethered to humans who can restrain the technology when needed to avoid unacceptable risks to others. Moreover, because AI governance conceived as leashes does not presuppose some predetermined path or roadway that innovation must stay within, it better accommodates the rapid technological changes that are emblematic of the modern era of AI innovation, including the emergence of agentic forms of AI. Paradoxically, by leashing AI through responsible human management oversight, rather than trying futilely to keep it within some fixed guardrails, AI governance can in a broader sense help unleash technological innovation so that it produces positive value for society.