There is a kind of document that announces one thing in its title and does the opposite in its verbs. You learn to read for the verbs. The title is for the press release. The verbs are the policy.
This week the President signed an executive order on artificial intelligence safety. Read the title and you would think the government had decided to look hard at the most powerful machines before they ship. Read the verbs and you find a different document.
The verb is “asks.”
The order asks the companies to submit their most powerful models for government testing before release. Asks. The submission is voluntary. A safety regime in which the regulated party decides whether to show up is not a regime. It is an invitation, and invitations get declined.
The number is 30.
There was an earlier draft of this order. In that one, the government had up to 90 days to examine a model before it reached the public. In the version that got signed, the window is 30. The safety review lost two thirds of its time somewhere between the draft and the desk. Nobody announces a change like that. You find it by laying the two versions side by side, which is the only honest way to read anything that comes out of a building like this one.
The history is the tell.
Here is the part worth remembering. This same order was supposed to be signed last month. At the last minute the White House pulled it, worried it would slow the American companies in the race against China. So the order sat. Then it came back, shorter, softer, voluntary, and this time it was safe enough to sign. Not safe for the public. Safe for the order.
What it is.
I have read a lot of rules written by people who did not want a rule. They have a sound. Lots of “encourage.” Lots of “voluntary.” Lots of “up to.” A real rule says “must,” and “within,” and “or else.” This one says “asks,” and “30 days,” and, between the lines, “if that works for everyone.”
The title says safety. The document says later. The President signed the title.
asks AI companies to voluntarily submit their most powerful models
The breakdown.
- Factual basis NPR reported the order, the voluntary submission, and the 90-to-30-day change, and the White House published a fact sheet.23/25
- Self-awareness The safety branding sits on top of a request the companies are free to ignore.8/20
- Staff containment The dilution was the containment. They shortened and softened it until it could be signed.10/20
- Recovery attempt This signing was the recovery from May's last-minute cancellation. It recovered by giving up most of the teeth.8/15
- Public spectacle A document story rather than a podium one, carried by NPR and the trade press.10/20
Was this dumb enough?
Members can adjust the score. Become a member.