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Biden-Era AI Safety Promises Aren't Holding Up, and Apple's the Weakest Link
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This Fast Company article reports on a Brown/Harvard/Stanford analysis finding that only ~52% of Biden-era voluntary AI safety commitments are being honored by signatory companies, with Apple performing worst at 13%, raising questions about the efficacy of voluntary versus mandatory AI regulation.
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Summary
A preprint study by researchers at Brown, Harvard, and Stanford evaluated 16 AI companies on 30 indicators derived from the Biden administration's 8 voluntary AI safety commitments. On average, companies fulfilled only 52% of commitments, with OpenAI leading at 83% and Apple last at 13%. The findings raise serious doubts about the effectiveness of voluntary AI safety pledges as a regulatory approach.
Key Points
- •Only ~52% of Biden-era voluntary AI safety commitments are being honored across 16 signatory companies, per a Brown/Harvard/Stanford preprint.
- •OpenAI scored highest (83%), followed by Anthropic (80%), Google (77%), Microsoft (73%); Apple ranked last at just 13%.
- •Researchers translated 8 White House AI commitments into 30 yes/no indicators scored on public disclosures through December 31, 2024.
- •Lack of public disclosure was itself treated as a compliance problem, since transparency is part of the commitments.
- •The study's authors argue voluntary commitments 'don't seem that useful,' with implications for ongoing policy debates on mandatory vs. voluntary AI regulation.
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Biden-era AI safety promises aren’t holding up, and Apple’s the weakest link - Fast Company
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08-21-2025TECH
Biden-era AI safety promises aren’t holding up, and Apple’s the weakest link
Only half of the voluntary commitments on AI made in 2023 made by 16 large AI companies are being followed, a new analysis suggests.
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[Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images]
BY Chris Stokel-Walker
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Throughout 2023, the Biden administration persuaded a group of AI companies to sign voluntary commitments to “drive safe, secure, and trustworthy development of AI technology.” But the world of politics—and the AI industry—moves quickly.
A new analysis by researchers at Brown, Harvard, and Stanford suggests that only about half of those commitments are still being honored. The worst-performing signatory, Apple, has evidence for just one in eight. All commitments were, and remain, voluntary.
“This came at a time politically when we expected things might be changing,” says Rishi Bommasani, a Stanford researcher and one of the study’s authors. The analysis, posted as a preprint on arXiv, notes that the commitments were made late in the Biden administration, and the political climate has since shifted in Washington, D.C.
The researchers translated the White House’s eight voluntary AI commitments—covering safety testing, security, and public trust—into 30 yes-no indicators, then scored 16 signatory companies based on public disclosures up to December 31, 2024. “It’s difficult to discern what exactly constitutes a company satisfying their commitment adequately versus not,” says Bommasani.
With no clear guidance from the White House, they adopted a simple test: “Is there any evidence publicly that the companies are doing something in furtherance of these commitments?” While it’s possible a company could be complying without disclosing it, Bommasani argues the lack of transparency itself is a problem.
The biggest names in AI performed best. OpenAI scored highest at 83%, followed by Anthropic (80%), Google (77%), Microsoft (73%), and Amazon and Meta (both 67%). Seven companies overall were seen as upholding the commitments by t
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