During Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s Questioning Of Top US Intelligence Officials, ChatGPT Asks About The Threats It Poses In Its First Ever Question In Congress

WASHINGTON – In today's annual House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on worldwide threats, Congressman questioned top U.S. intelligence community officials on threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and other adversaries, including a question on the risks of artificial intelligence platforms that the AI language model ChatGPT drafted. After having FBI Director Christopher Wray confirm the possibility that the CCP could use TikTok for shaping public opinion and tracking the location of app users, Congressman Krishnamoorthi questioned Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Lieutenant General Scott Berrier, Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, on cooperation between Russia and the CCP, as well as on the military readiness of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

In the final phase of his question line, Congressman Krishnamoorthi turned to the threats posed by artificial intelligence in the hands of America's adversaries. Removing his phone from his pocket, the Congressman noted, "I wanted to ask you a question about threats from ChatGPT, but I just couldn't think of any, so I went to ChatGPT, and I said, ‘ask question of CIA Director William Burns about threats from ChatGPT.'" In response to the Congressman's request, ChatGPT produced the following question:

"Director Burns, what measures is the CIA taking to monitor and mitigate potential risks associated with the use of AI language models like ChatGPT, and how would you prevent AI language models not to be used by malicious actors to spread false information or influence public opinion?"

Congressman Krishnamoorthi's full exchange with CIA Director Burns, including the question from ChatGPT, and Director Burns', response is available here.

Congressman Krishnamoorthi discussing threats posed by AI language models with CIA Director Burns while asking a question written by ChatGPT. Click on the image above to view the video of their exchange.