Republican Senators Jim Banks of Indiana and Tom Cotton of Arkansas are escalating pressure on the nation's top intelligence leaders to sharpen their focus on China's rapid advancements in artificial intelligence. In a letter sent Thursday to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross, and NSA Director Joshua Rudd, the pair laid out what they described as critical intelligence gaps that must be closed to safeguard U.S. national security.
The correspondence, obtained first by The Hill, arrives as Gabbard announced Friday she would resign from her post, adding a layer of uncertainty to the intelligence community's leadership. The senators' push comes amid growing bipartisan concern that Beijing is closing the gap in AI development, a field with profound military and economic implications.
Monitoring Key Scientists and Infrastructure
Banks and Cotton recommended that U.S. intelligence agencies track leading Chinese scientists at the forefront of frontier AI research, monitor the country's massive data center buildout, and crack down on the smuggling of advanced chips and chipmaking equipment. They argued that these steps are essential to understanding the scope and speed of China's AI ambitions.
The senators also called for assessments of specific thresholds that are "critical for the United States to either achieve before China or prevent China from achieving altogether." They demanded comprehensive evaluations of Beijing's overall computing power and AI capabilities, warning that the intelligence community's current efforts may be insufficient.
The Mythos Wake-Up Call
The urgency in the letter was driven in part by the emergence of Anthropic's Mythos, a new AI model that has raised cybersecurity alarms. According to the senators, Mythos can identify decades-old security vulnerabilities, a capability that could be exploited by both legitimate institutions and malicious hackers. Anthropic chose to release the model to a limited group of companies and government agencies due to concerns about misuse.
"But Mythos is only the beginning: experts are predicting that AI systems developed in the upcoming years will have military and intelligence implications beyond the cyber domain," Banks and Cotton wrote. They warned that if the United States fails to maintain a decisive AI edge over China, the consequences could be severe.
"If the U.S. fails to establish and maintain an enduring AI advantage over China, this will have serious national security and geopolitical implications for Americans," the senators continued. "Our ability to manage this risk will, in large part, depend on our ability to have accurate assessments of how China is using AI, threats posed by their AI systems, and how large our lead is."
The push for greater intelligence focus on China's AI sector comes amid broader Republican efforts to reshape the intelligence community's priorities. Senator Banks has also backed Representative Elise Stefanik for the DNI post after Gabbard's resignation, signaling a desire for continuity in aggressive China-focused intelligence gathering.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues to navigate tensions with GOP senators over other national security issues, including the handling of China sanctions and the Abraham Accords. The senators' letter underscores a growing recognition that technological competition with Beijing may define the next era of great-power rivalry.
Emily Brooks contributed to this report.
