AI’s elite was celebrated in Washington, public-sourced in data centers and chatbots

WASHINGTON — Glitz, glamor and geopolitics were on the menu Wednesday night as Washington’s AI elite gathered to celebrate AI pioneers.

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Complete with a red carpet and a dancing humanoid robot, the event could have been mistaken for a sci-fi Hollywood premiere. While AI has become an increasing source of tension in communities across America, the night’s honorees were mostly optimistic about AI’s trajectory and its potential impact on society.

“AI is a transformative technology that’s going to enable many advances in everything from health care to engineering to energy production to defense,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright told NBC News as the night kicked off.

“I understand people’s concerns about this, but it’s going to be very positive for our community,” Wright said. “It’s a beautiful event.”

Held at the Waldorf Astoria — formerly the Trump International Hotel — a stone’s throw from the White House, the Washington AI Honors black-tie gala brought together a mixed mix of billionaires, elected politicians, industry, lobbyists, administration officials and a handful of scientists to exchange information on AI deals and development.

The event was organized by the Washington AI Network, a group that hosts regular fireside chats with Washington’s AI movers and shakers, and sponsored by deep-pocketed tech power players including Anthropic, Microsoft, and Meta. Senior administration officials including Wright, National Cyber ​​Director Sean Cairncross and Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz attended.

Several speakers lamented the growing public pushback against AI on issues ranging from data-center construction to labor-market disruption caused by AI, which they said could unfairly overshadow AI’s potential benefits.

“Unfortunately, there’s a double narrative going on in America right now about the merits of AI,” said prominent investor Kevin O’Leary, accepting the AI ​​Global Ambassador Award last night. “In one camp, we have people who think AI will replace all jobs, and then robots will eat babies.”

“The flip side is that AI can be a tool to advance medical research, democratize everything we do in education, add productivity to our economy, and advance what we do in security,” O’Leary added. Many Americans fear data centers because they invite developers to avoid outdated information and energy production.

AI messaging from a gold-leafed ballroom is often at odds with popular perceptions of the technology. In March, an NBC News poll found that a majority of Americans think the risks from AI outweigh its benefits. In that poll, only the Democratic Party and Iran were viewed less favorably than AI. “We’re behind the eight ball in messaging,” O’Leary said. The “Shark Tank” mogul is currently trying to build one of the nation’s largest data centers in Utah, but has run into local opposition.

Events like neon-clad dancers on stilts, a roving food-delivery drone, and hundreds of candles elegantly floating on water were a mix of collaborative AI development and a real preference for standard DC happy-go-lucky craftiness.

Attendees seemed eager to squeeze as much networking as possible out of the gala, often chatting with their partners and neighbors during the speakers’ remarks. This conversation caused the MCs to sway the crowd not so playfully several times.

Gabriel Cascia, the Vatican’s incoming ambassador to Washington, struggled to be heard during his opening address. “At every stage, the development and application of artificial intelligence must be guided by the dignity of the human person, the common good of the human family,” Kachia said, switching silverware and business cards.

CNN’s Pamela Brown, who chaired some of the affairs, asked, “Be quiet so I can tell you this secret,” in what turned out to be a new survey of Americans’ views on AI by the Washington AI Network and research organization Morning Consult. The poll found that AI lost in every head-to-head matchup with other US institutions, such as Congress, on matters of trust. In a recent online poll of about 1,500 American adults, 70% of Americans are concerned about the impact of AI in upcoming elections, with specific concerns about deepfakes and AI-fueled personalized campaign ad targeting.

Americans worry about AI because “they’re afraid they’ll be left behind,” said award-winning Michael Javanto, CEO of the nonprofit Omidyar Network, which aims to foster more inclusive and accessible technology. “Who is missing from your conversations, from your living room, from your product design releases?” Jawando asked the technologists and politicians in the room. “What can you do to change that?”

Moments earlier, Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said AI is helping the military “exponentially accelerate the kill chain.” The military is eager to team up with private-sector companies designing today’s AI systems, he said, “to build tools that help our soldiers see farther, decide faster and strike harder than any adversary anywhere on Earth at any time.”

Wednesday’s event was the second iteration of the gala and featured O’Leary, Jawando, Sens. Mike Rounds, RS.D., and Mark Warner, D-Va., Nvidia co-founder Chris Malachowsky, Katherine Yelich, Katherine Yelich, Katherine Yelich, the vice chancellor of the University of California and Maj. Gelley, Maj.