Let’s be clear about one thing: Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris has never been the border secretary, despite what her political opponents have tried to call her. If Harris has ever served as secretary in the Biden administration, it was not an official title, but rather an artificial intelligence (AI) field with broad authority to coordinate and direct multiple agencies, organizations and departments on multifaceted policy priorities. Oddly, despite the ubiquity of AI these days, the issue doesn’t seem to be much of a topic in the 2024 presidential race. In fact, there is not a single mention of the role on the “Meet VP Kamala Harris” page of Harris’ website as she prepares to officially become the party’s presidential candidate at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
AI may lack the political resonance of the border today, but it is time to reconsider its importance to the average voter. As VP Harris transitions from a mood-based campaign to a more substantive one, she should shine a spotlight on AI in her own record. When AI is reimagined as a sweeping change that could impact jobs, income equality, national security, and the rights of ordinary citizens, it moves rather quickly from esoteric to everyday concern. While the Trump-Vance campaign is backed by major Silicon Valley and AI influencers and investors, including Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and Marc Andreessen, it is Harris, not former President Donald Trump, who is really influencing AI policy. So what was Harris’ record in this area? And where might the VP take AI policy if she wins the White House?
Harris’ Role The AI czar may be the best-kept secret of the political season. But if you follow the development of AI policy in the world’s leading AI producing nation, all signs point to Harris. Surprisingly, the development of AI policy has been led by the White House and not the U.S. Congress. In fact, despite the growing need for AI guardrails, Congress has done little, while the White House has tapped Harris as its highest-ranking official to help craft and follow up on the October 2023 Executive Order on AI.
The order aimed to ensure “safe, secure, and trustworthy development and use of AI.” Additionally, Harris expressed a broader commitment to “establish, with allies and partners, rules and norms for AI that reflect our democratic values and interests, including transparency, privacy, accountability, and consumer protection.” Critical for a technology that is overly reliant on a few players in the industry, Harris has proposed and led an important first step to bring these players together around a set of AI practices and standards that advance three key goals: safety, security, and trust.
Given the U.S.’ disproportionate influence over AI used around the world, it is critical to articulate the U.S. position in international forums. Harris has represented the U.S. at major international conferences and has led U.S. global advocacy efforts to ensure safe AI, including the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in the U.K. On the other end of the stakeholder spectrum, Harris has met with communities most directly affected by the technology’s widespread adoption, including consumer protection groups and labor and civil rights leaders, to discuss safeguarding against AI risks.
There is another side to Harris’ engagement with AI. As the ultimate political unicorn (a woman of color, an under-appreciated and parodied vice president of the Biden administration, and an overnight sensation as the Democratic presidential candidate after US President Joe Biden withdrew from the 2024 presidential race), Harris’ story has been defined primarily by others, through AI-powered disinformation campaigns, viral memes, and more. She has been the personal target of deepfake videos purportedly showing her making gibberish statements such as “today is today, yesterday is yesterday.” The AI-assisted voice synthesis that led to an insulting parody of her presidential campaign ad was reposted on X by Musk himself. Trump has also falsely claimed that the large crowds that flocked to Harris’ campaign rallies were AI-generated. In other words, Harris can legitimately claim that AI has been weaponized against her personally.
Finally, Harris comes from the global capital of AI. As a former California attorney general and senator, she has been funded by many in the tech industry, with more than 200 Silicon Valley investors backing her White House bid. One of her closest friends is her brother-in-law, Uber’s chief legal officer Tony West (now on leave to work on the Harris campaign). It’s fair to ask whether she’s prepared to confront the industry on tough issues. At the same time, her familiarity with industry leaders could help bring government and industry closer together.
What does Harris’ track record so far tell us about how she will tackle this issue if she becomes president? As Secretary of AI, Harris has demonstrated some clear patterns. First, her primary focus has been to promote safety and address the risks of unregulated use of AI that could lead to bias and abuse. Second, the White House under her leadership has taken a wide range of measures to increase safety, security, and reliability since the executive order was issued, from AI testbeds and model evaluation tools developed at the Department of Energy to a government-wide policy on AI issued by the Office of Management and Budget (the latter of which has safeguards in place to evaluate and monitor the societal impact of AI). Pilot programs using AI to protect critical government software are underway at the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security, and the Gender Policy Council and Office of Science and Technology Policy have issued calls for action to combat AI-generated image-based sexual abuse. Harris is also the chief executive involved in the release of the Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, which outlines principles for the ethical design and use of AI.
Another of Harris’ efforts aims to promote authenticity amid soaring concerns over AI-generated content, including proposing international standards for tracking the authenticity of government-created digital content through digital signatures, watermarks and labeling, and identifying content generated or manipulated by AI.
While Harris is by no means an AI expert and there is still much work to be done to implement a full-scale AI policy, the numbers speak to solid early accomplishments. The executive order followed a list of 100 action items that have been completed by various federal agencies on issues ranging from developing new technical guidelines for AI safety, to assessing the misuse of dual-use foundation models, to developing a framework for managing the risks of generative AI. Harris secured voluntary commitments from 15 companies to ensure the safety, security, and transparency of AI technologies. Thirty-one countries joined the U.S. in approving a declaration establishing norms for the responsible development, deployment, and use of military AI capabilities. And the U.S. government secured commitments of up to $200 million from 10 leading foundations to fund research centered on five pillars, from democracy and rights to increasing AI transparency and accountability.
Harris’ campaign is based on the idea of ”no turning back” with an eye on the future. The Democratic National Convention in Chicago is an opportunity for Harris to tell the public more about a key part of the future: the economic and social impacts of AI and Harris’ role in influencing them. Time is running out to communicate the importance of this issue, especially to the working class. The impact of AI on different professions is open to debate, but some argue that in the short term, high-income workers are more likely to benefit from AI-induced productivity gains, and the share of income flowing to capital is likely to increase at the expense of the share flowing to labor. Both trends will lead to a widening of income inequality.
There are differing views on the impact on employment. Some believe AI will help make many services, such as healthcare, and currently elite jobs, such as research, writing, graphic design, and software coding, more accessible to the middle class. Others foresee a realistic scenario of a hollowing out of the professions. Policies and campaign promises will need to indicate how a Harris administration would address the former outcome.
On the global stage, there are many existential risks associated with AI. Lethal autonomous weapons have become a major concern as multilateral agreements to ban such weapons have failed. Both the United States and China have declared ambitions to become global AI leaders, but tensions with major AI producers such as China are rising and there is no roadmap to reach an agreement. A recent seven-hour meeting between top officials from both countries in Geneva was billed as a dialogue on AI risk management but reportedly ended without any concrete agreements or plans for follow-up meetings.
At the same time, the atmosphere has become increasingly tense with US tariffs on Chinese products and restrictions on exports of high-performance chips to China. The Commerce Department is considering further restricting exports of China’s own AI models to China. Meanwhile, Beijing and Moscow are discussing a strategic partnership on a range of issues, including technology, with the Chinese Embassy in Washington accusing the US of “economic coercion and unilateral intimidation.” If handled incorrectly, these tensions could escalate.
Harris’ campaign could distinguish her candidacy by acknowledging her track record and momentum in AI policy development. She should lay out at least three issues her administration should address. First, understand AI’s impact on jobs and the resulting economic disparities, and develop a plan to mitigate the risks and protect the most vulnerable. Second, develop an AI strategy that addresses critical issues at home, such as access to healthcare and education, and skill building. Third, develop a vision for U.S. leadership in AI that advances responsible innovation, reduces geopolitical tensions, and protects U.S. national security interests.
From the Emperor The appointment of a chief AI officer to the presidency is unusual, and brings unusual challenges. While chief AI officers are not typically formally appointed (Harris was never formally appointed as chief AI officer, despite her visible involvement as chief AI officer), they serve as cross-party leaders, often out of the public eye. For example, then-Presidential Special Envoy for Climate Change John Kerry played a key role in strengthening climate cooperation with China as the de facto chief climate officer without much attention.
In other instances, and when called upon during a serious crisis, great expectations are placed on the emperor. The city of Boston is waiting for the Rat Emperor, and the people want quick results. The emperor has no executive power, but he is respected by many, which is his calling card to convene parties with different agendas. Presidents have none of this luxury. They take responsibility for the problems they take on, and do so in public.
There’s no escaping the reality that we are in the age of AI and this election is one in which it is happening. It will be important for Harris’ team to communicate the importance of AI to people’s lives and let voters know how she will apply her unique track record. American voters will choose their next president this November, and at least one candidate is off to a strong start on this important issue.
