Garry Tan, founder of Y Combinator: Supports AI regulation but opposes monopolies

Garry Tan, boss of Y Combinator , a famous venture capital organization, believes that artificial intelligence (AI) needs to be regulated. He supports the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developing a risk mitigation framework for AI and some content in the Biden administration’s executive order. NIST’s framework proposes principles such as AI must comply with applicable data privacy and copyright laws, users should be informed about the use of AI, prohibiting AI from creating child sexual abuse content, … Biden’s executive order requires AI companies to share secure data with the government and ensures small developers have equitable access.

However, Tan also expressed concern about several other laws being proposed in California and San Francisco. For example, the bill would allow the California attorney general to sue AI companies if their products cause harm.

He believes that the important issue today is how to have good regulations for AI. Tan uses the example of Ian Hogarth, a British AI expert who is balancing between supporting innovation and minimizing risk.

As for Y Combinator, Tan said the organization will not fund startups with goals or products that they believe are not good for society.

Even so, the number of AI startups backed by Y Combinator is still growing. According to official data, the winter 2024 investment round has up to 86 AI startups, nearly double that of winter 2023 and three times more than winter 2021.

Recent events raise questions about whether companies selling AI products can be trusted to define responsible AI. OpenAI, a famous AI research company, disbanded its AI responsibility team and got into trouble for using a voice like actress Scarlett Johansson without consent. Meta also caused controversy when it established an AI advisory council filled with only white men.

Garry Tan, like many other venture capitalists in Silicon Valley, focuses on new, large, and profitable business opportunities. He sees startups as a maze of ideas and the advent of new technologies like large language modeling (LLM) will shake up this entire maze.

In the field of artificial intelligence (AI), San Francisco is considered the center of breakthroughs. This is where Anthropic, a company founded by Y Combinator (YC) alumni, and OpenAI, which is a branch of YC, are headquartered.

However, Sam Altman, the head of YC, had previously run an AI research lab, so his partner at YC, Garry Tan, affirmed that he had no plans to go in this direction.

Another successful example of YC is legal startup Casetext, which was sold to Thomson Reuters for $600 million in 2023. Tan believes that Casetext is one of the first companies in the world to have access to text-generating AI technology and is also one of the first successful businesses in this field.

Looking to the future of AI, Tan said that “clearly, we need to be smart in our use of this technology” to minimize the risks associated with bioterrorism and cyberattacks. However, he also emphasized the need for a “more cautious approach”.

Tan predicts there will not be a situation of “big fish eating small fish” in the AI ​​field, but instead “a vibrant environment with many options for users, creating freedom for founders to build products.” products that impact billions of people.”

What Tan worries about most is not the evil AI going out of control but the lack of AI options. He said that “it is possible that we will fall into a new monopoly situation, where power is concentrated in a few certain models. Then, market exploitation will occur, and that is a world in which I do not want to live”.

In short, Tan hopes the future of AI is a vibrant market with many options, bringing benefits to both users and investors.