Grassroots action workshop: Lobby against dangerous AI

​Find us in Study room 8: head straight back past the computer lab, and look to your left. The room is reserved until 4pm. For those who want to chat afterward, we'll move to the Connections Café (also inside the library).

​AI companies don't want you to have a say in your future.

​They are racing to build powerful AI systems that they do not understand and cannot control. Most leading AI experts say this could even lead to human extinction. Hundreds of top experts and other prominent figures are now demanding a global ban on creating artificial superintelligence, at least until it can be made safe and the public has consented. It is my job and yours to get our policymakers on the same page.

​At its most basic, grassroots lobbying just means letting your political representatives know what you care about. It can sound intimidating, but you'll be shocked at how easy it is! This event will help get you over that hump. Join us to send some emails, make some calls (just to voicemail!), and chat with us about how you can make a genuine difference, today and going forward.

​We hold this event every month, and it's a little different each time. The focus shifts to support current events or whatever the attendees most want to work on. (Need feedback on an email draft? Looking for info or sources? Want to practice making phone calls? We are here to help.)

​What to bring:

​All you need is your phone!

​You can optionally bring a tablet or laptop if you would rather use that to write call notes or edit an email draft.

​The tools we'll use:

​https://pauseai-us.org/BanSuperintelligence

​It takes less than a minute to fill out this form. The tool automatically selects your federal Senators and federal Representative.

• ​Email Tool: This populates with a ready-made email. You can edit and personalize it if you want. When you're ready, hit "Send message", and that's it!

• ​Phone Tool: Hit "Call". The system will call you, and patch you through to each of the three DC congressional offices! Just hit star (*) between each call instead of hanging up, until the end of the last call. It even gives you a suggested script!

​Tips:

• ​Follow the link above to reach out to your Congressional offices even if you can't make it to this event. The workshop is just so that we can be productive together and provide information and support.

• ​If you call after 5pm Eastern Time or on the weekend, you'll always go to voicemail.

• ​If you hit the voicemail time limit or mess up your delivery, you can usually re-record by silently waiting and then pressing the indicated option.

• ​Lastly, lobbying is a numbers game. Adding a personal touch to an email really helps, but the total number of phone calls and emails on a topic still matters more than exactly what you say. For maximum impact, contact your reps regularly. I recommend twice a month or every other week. Using these ready-made tools can make that an easy habit.