--- title: "Biden Apparently Got Scared of AI After Watching the New “Mission: Impossible”" description: "  Earlier this week, president Joe Biden signed a sweeping executive order on artificial intelligence, setting up new directives to keep humanity safe from a number of dystopian doomsday scenarios. And now, thanks to a recent PBS interview with deputy White House chief of staff Bruce Reed, we've gotten a glimpse of what may have […]" date: "2023-11-01" modified: "2023-11-01" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/biden-scared-ai-watching-new-mission-impossible" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" tags: - "ai regulation" - "joe biden" - "the digest" --- # Biden Apparently Got Scared of AI After Watching the New “Mission: Impossible” ![President Joe Biden was reportedly spooked by the AI in the Hollywood action blockbuster "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One."]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Spooked Earlier this week, US president Joe Biden signed a [sweeping executive order]() on artificial intelligence, setting up new directives to keep humanity safe from a number of dystopian doomsday scenarios. And now, thanks to a recent [*PBS* interview]() with deputy White House chief of staff Bruce Reed, we've gotten a glimpse of what may have inspired the 80-year-old to sign the new order. According to Reed, Biden caught up with the latest Hollywood action blockbuster "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One" at the president's Camp David country retreat earlier this year. And, against all odds, the grossly exaggerated depiction of AI seems to have struck a nerve with the aging president. ## The Entity Without risking any spoilers, the movie features an evil AI called "the Entity" that triggers a disastrous sequence of events. The movie is as ludicrously far-fetched as it is fun to watch, an action-packed and borderline nonsensical take on the subject that's rife with cliches. In short, the movie isn't much more than an enjoyable, smooth-brained diversion — and not a warning about the actual future of AI. But the movie clearly hit a nerve at Camp David, with Reed, who watched the movie with Biden, recalling in his interview with *PBS* that "if he hadn’t already been concerned about what could go wrong with AI before that movie, he saw plenty more to worry about." We're not alone in having some serious reservations when it comes to the "godlike" AI portrayed in the movie. When [*The Washington Post* asked]() Alex Hanna, director of research at the Distributed AI Research Institute, if the "Entity" is an accurate portrayal of what an AI is capable of earlier this year, she had a straightforward answer. "No," she said. "It's absurd," adding that its ability to "hack into basically any electronic system" is "pretty ridiculous." Other than watching an incorporeal AI villain threaten the world with its cyberterrorism campaign, Biden also was shown "fake AI images of himself, of his dog," Reed told *PBS*. He also apparently "saw how it can make bad poetry." And if that isn't an impetus to sign sweeping regulations to stop AI from destroying the world, we don't know what is. **More on Biden's order:** *[Joe Biden's Executive Order on AI Is Expansive, But Vague]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()