WASHINGTON — Dire warnings about TikTok dominated conversations on Capitol Hill earlier this year, with both Republicans and Democrats describing the Chinese-owned app as one of the gravest national security threats to the U.S.
But the congressional concern has quieted down in the months since a contentious March hearing with TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew. There was the U.S. debt limit to raise. House Republicans are busy investigating President Joe Biden’s administration and family. And lawmakers have turned their attention to the potentially epic impact of artificial intelligence.
“Congress has a pretty limited attention span,” said Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Senate Democrat and chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “AI is the topic du jour on Capitol Hill.”
