CES 2024: FTC Commissioner Slaughter Discusses New Rules, Competition, And AI

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter spoke at CES 2024 on Wednesday about some of the agency's top priorities in the tech sector. As part of an interview for the "Conversation with a Commissioner" series, Commissioner Slaughter answered questions about the agency's approach to rulemaking, competition, and – keeping with a big theme of CES this year – artificial intelligence (AI). Below are some highlights.

AI. Commissioner Slaughter echoed other government officials in noting the potential benefits of AI, and talked about the FTC's role in helping to "unleash" the benefits while protecting against downside risks. She highlighted two key consumer protection priorities – avoiding deception and protecting privacy. On the deception front, she noted the risks of overpromising what AI can do from a marketing perspective, without being able to deliver the benefits. And on the privacy front, she noted that AI models are often fueled by large