Strategic study on decentralized artificial intelligence infrastructure

(a) Study required The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary shall jointly conduct a study on the national strategic relevance of decentralized artificial intelligence infrastructure that operates over blockchain-based or distributed networks. (b) Study contents The study required under subsection (a) shall include the following: (1) An evaluation of decentralized artificial intelligence systems that utilize distributed computing resources and cryptographically secured protocols. (2) An assessment of the infrastructure resilience, censorship resistance, and national security implications of such systems compared to centralized models of artificial intelligence deployment. (3) An analysis of the potential economic, workforce, and infrastructure development benefits of promoting decentralized compute models within the United States. (4) Recommendations for standards, security protocols, or national policy initiatives to support the domestic development and deployment of decentralized artificial intelligence systems. (c) Interim and final reports (1) Interim report Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary shall jointly submit to the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives an interim report on the findings of the study required under subsection (a). (2) Final report Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary shall jointly submit to the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a final report on the findings of the study required under subsection (a). (d) Digital token regulatory coordination (1) In general In conducting the study required under subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary shall consult with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding the regulatory classification of digital tokens that facilitate access to or operation of decentralized artificial intelligence networks. (2) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that tokens described in paragraph (1) are functionally distinct from securities and should be subject to the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.