Encode

Today, Encode's Adam Billen and Sunny Gandhi published a piece in Tech Policy Press discussing the Senate's recent passage of the TAKE IT DOWN Act and the path forward for the DEFIANCE Act. Both bills, which Encode has extensively supported, came close to passing last session. Now, Congress has the chance to move forward two heavily vetted, carefully crafted bills. https://lnkd.in/g9kuQ6Ru

Today Encode, alongside the Young People's Alliance and the Tech Justice Law Project, have filed a formal complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Replika AI, a mobile application owned and managed by Luka, Inc. The complaint outlines systematic violations of FTC regulations, including deceptive advertising, unfair and deceptive design practices, and exploitative practices targeting vulnerable individuals. Replika markets itself to users an always-available, professional girlfriend and therapist that will cure their loneliness and treat their mental illness. What it provides is a manipulative platform engineered to exploit users for their time, money, and personal data. Replika's premium features -- deeper romantic relationships, intimate images sent on demand, video calls, and more -- are designed to profit from users' dependence on its companions. We are calling upon the Federal Trade Commission to review the aforementioned complaint, conduct a thorough investigation, and take appropriate enforcement action to protect consumers and ensure that Replika and other AI companion services operate with honesty, transparency, and the appropriate safeguards. https://lnkd.in/gJBuNJ8m

Today we released a policy brief written by Jack Kelly, Van Monday, Micah Schulman and edited by Adam Billen addressing U.S. competition with China to set the standards for AI. If we let China win we risk ceding control over the future of the most important technology in history. The CCP views itself as having failed to influence standards-setting for the global internet in the 80's and 90's. If it had been successful those authoritarian values would be baked into the technology underpinning all of modern society. We can't let that happen for AI. Today, China provides direct subsidies to firms that both propose and successfully set standards to intentionally spread Chinese influence in major bodies. That has resulted in such a flood of standards that some US companies have withdrawn from bodies, particularly the ITU-T. Chinese efforts have already been successful in setting standards that directly mirror top Chinese companies' surveillance tech, including video monitoring capabilities used for surveillance within smart street lights that groups like the ACLU have long warned about. Investment in academia plays a particularly important role. China's National Institute for Standardization has created graduate-level degree programs focused on standards and Chinese institutions actively recruit foreign experts to work on standards-setting. The economic stakes are massive - 93% of global trade is impacted by standards, amounting to trillions annually. When China controls standards, they can extract licensing fees and shape global markets to benefit their companies. The US response has been woefully inadequate. NIST, our key standards agency, has been forced to "stop hiring and filling gaps" due to budget cuts. Over 60% of its facilities fail to meet federal standards, causing an estimated 20% loss in productivity. Meanwhile, China strategically targets key positions in standards bodies. In the 3GPP, they hold 19 leadership positions compared to America's 12. They've arranged over 100 bilateral standards agreements with Global South countries through Belt and Road. The solution requires real investment: fully funding NIST, engaging academia, and coordinating with allies. Our full analysis and recommendations: https://lnkd.in/gDsS-eHx