Washington, July 2 (SocialNews.XYZ) A bipartisan congressional panel this week examined a series of legislative proposals aimed at strengthening American leadership in artificial intelligence, robotics, semiconductors and other critical technologies, as lawmakers from both parties warned that the United States faces growing competition from China.
At a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee, Republican lawmakers stressed the need for faster deployment of emerging technologies, stronger domestic manufacturing and protection of critical supply chains.
Democrats agreed that maintaining US technological leadership is essential, but argued that cuts to research funding threaten the country's long-term competitiveness.
Opening the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Gus Bilirakis said leadership in emerging technologies would shape both America's economy and national security.
"Leadership in these fields will determine not only our economic competitiveness, but also our ability to safeguard our national security and maintain our strategic advantage over our adversaries," he said.
"We can't let them do that. We must respond by fostering innovation here at home, supporting research and development, and creating an environment where American companies can continue to compete and succeed."
Republicans highlighted legislation covering robotics, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, biotechnology, quantum technologies and memory chips, arguing that the US must accelerate innovation to stay ahead of geopolitical rivals.
Representative Jay Obernolte said the US "cannot allow our adversaries, such as China, to overtake our position through aggressive, state-driven industrial strategies."
He said the hearing was intended to evaluate policies needed to "position America's technological leadership and global competitiveness."
Democrats, however, repeatedly argued that the Trump administration's reductions in federal research spending were undermining those same goals.
Representative Kathy Castor said, "China has overtaken the United States in total R&D spending, while the administration has cancelled or frozen more than 7,800 research grants."
"We can pass every bill on this list, but if we keep starving our labs, then we are just naming technologies for China to implement," she said.
Representative Frank Pallone echoed those concerns, saying the administration had "illegally frozen more than 7,800 federal research grants" while warning that China was advancing "an integrated industrial strategy." He said studies estimate the research cuts could cost the US economy as much as "$1 trillion in GDP."
Industry witnesses also warned that China is rapidly expanding its technological capabilities.
Jason Fiorillo, Chief Legal Officer at Boston Dynamics, said China now has "more than 140 humanoid robot manufacturers" supported by state-backed programmes.
"The physical AI race is well underway, with strategic implications for US manufacturing, energy, public safety, and national security," he said.
"It is time for a national robotics strategy," Fiorillo added, urging Congress to pass the proposed National Commission on Robotics Act.
Neil Chilson, Head of AI Policy at the Abundance Institute, warned that China is emerging as the global leader in open-source artificial intelligence.
"China is giving its AI technology away; it's releasing open-weight AI models that are cheap, capable, and they're fast becoming the world's default," he said.
He argued that US-built open models "are a vital source of competition, innovation and even security," and backed legislation intended to strengthen American leadership in the field.
Dr Jedidah Isler, Chief Science Officer at the Federation of American Scientists, said technological leadership ultimately depends on sustained investment in scientific research and talent.
"The United States cannot lead in the technology of the future while neglecting the scientific enterprise, and most critically, the people that produce them," she said.
She described technology leadership as "not a subscription service that renews automatically" but "more like a garden that must be cultivated over time."
The hearing examined a package of bills covering robotics, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, biotechnology, connected vehicles, memory chips and semiconductor supply chains.
Several measures received bipartisan support, although lawmakers remained divided over research funding, environmental regulation and the extent of government oversight.
The hearing comes as Washington intensifies efforts to reduce dependence on Chinese technology and secure domestic supply chains for strategic industries.
Competition with Beijing has become a rare area of broad bipartisan consensus in Congress, with lawmakers increasingly supporting legislation aimed at strengthening US manufacturing, research and advanced technologies.
Source: IANS
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