My AI Advisers: Lessons from a Year of Expert Digital Assistants
Article
AEIdeas

My AI Advisers: Lessons from a Year of Expert Digital Assistants

Earlier this month, Ezra Klein reflected on how, despite recognizing AI’s enormous potential, he found no practical place for it in his daily routine. He echoed what I’ve heard from many people:…

The Best AI Law May Be One That Already Exists
Article
AEIdeas

The Best AI Law May Be One That Already Exists

I find myself increasingly sympathetic to William F. Buckley Jr. and his inclination to stand “athwart history, yelling Stop, at a time when no one is inclined to do so.”…

Will Fresh Eyes Oversee Secret Surveillance?
Blog Post
AEIdeas

Will Fresh Eyes Oversee Secret Surveillance?

The recent hearing on Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination for Director of National Intelligence inspires some observations on surveillance and society in the form of a book review. My Life as a Spy: Investigations…

Free Speech and the Tech Leaders’ Presence at Trump’s Swearing-In Ceremony
Blog Post
AEIdeas

Free Speech and the Tech Leaders’ Presence at Trump’s Swearing-In Ceremony

It was impossible to miss them during the swearing-in ceremony for President Donald Trump: The über-wealthy leaders of some of the world’s most prominent and important technology companies, clustered tightly…

Deepseek’s AI Breakthroughs Don’t Change the Fundamentals—but They Are a Warning
Article
AEIdeas

Deepseek’s AI Breakthroughs Don’t Change the Fundamentals—but They Are a Warning

China’s AI ambitions have long been hamstrung by a critical weakness: access to high-end computing hardware. US export controls have effectively cut Beijing off from the most advanced AI chips,…

Questions Kennedy Must Answer, According to Experts
Article
The New York Times

Questions Kennedy Must Answer, According to Experts

Ahead of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation hearings, New York Times Opinion invited experts and leaders across disciplines and ideologies to share questions they believe Mr. Kennedy must answer before…

On the Front Porch with Brent Orrell and Tony Pipa: A Conversation with Benji Backer and Michelle Moore
Event

On the Front Porch with Brent Orrell and Tony Pipa: A Conversation with Benji Backer and Michelle Moore

Event Description The tensions between development and sustainability and production and conservation, combined with the ongoing debate over energy sources, have taken center stage in recent years. Join us for…

Federal R&D Funding Is Even More Valuable Than Washington Thinks
Article
AEIdeas

Federal R&D Funding Is Even More Valuable Than Washington Thinks

It’s a no-brainer that American public policy should aim to significantly increase both government and private-sector R&D investment to boost innovation-driven productivity and economic growth. During the 1960s Space Race, total…

A Warning Against Warning Labels on Social Media Platforms
Article
AEIdeas

A Warning Against Warning Labels on Social Media Platforms

If you can’t constitutionally restrict social media platforms or the speech they convey, force them to transmit some of your own speech they’ll surely dislike. That’s seemingly the strategy of…

A Warning Against Warning Labels on Social Media Platforms
Blog Post
AEIdeas

A Warning Against Warning Labels on Social Media Platforms

If you can’t constitutionally restrict social media platforms or the speech they convey, force them to transmit some of your own speech they’ll surely dislike. That’s seemingly the strategy of…

Brilliant Ideas on the Cutting Room Floor
Blog Post
AEIdeas

Brilliant Ideas on the Cutting Room Floor

The Social Science Research Network (SSRN) is a neat repository for papers from what can be a long history of creating ideas. Most scholars maintain a page there, or their…

AI’s Emerging Paradox
Article
The Dispatch

AI’s Emerging Paradox

While the presidential transition commanded headlines this week, equally significant shifts were occurring in AI technology. Just hours before Donald Trump’s inauguration, DeepSeek released its latest model, achieving a breakthrough in…

The Most Major Hurricanes Ever
Article
The Honest Broker

The Most Major Hurricanes Ever

Last year the world experienced the most major hurricane landfalls since records are available, tying only 2015, with 11 storms. Does last year indicate that we have reached a new…

Adults, Minors, and Access to Online Pornography: SCOTUS Weighs the Interests
Blog Post
AEIdeas

Adults, Minors, and Access to Online Pornography: SCOTUS Weighs the Interests

When it comes to free speech rights, the United States has only one First Amendment, but it also has two classes of citizens who receive different levels of protection under…

Trump’s Big, Bold AI Gamble
Article
AEIdeas

Trump’s Big, Bold AI Gamble

What a difference a week makes. As others and I have predicted, newly-inaugurated President Trump rolled back much of his predecessor’s policy approach to artificial intelligence (AI). But few forecasted…