A US Congress commission is urging a much larger national effort around Artificial General Intelligence, framing AGI as a strategic technology race in which the United States and China are closely matched.
The recommendation centers on a "Manhattan Project"-like program for AI. The reference points to the World War II program that produced the first atomic bomb, and signals the scale of ambition the commission wants Congress to consider.
A national AGI program aimed at China
The report argues that the United States cannot assume a durable lead in critical and emerging technology. It states: "The United States and China are neck and neck, with one or the other leading depending on the specific critical and emerging technology."
According to the report, the US currently leads globally in robust AI models. At the same time, China is pursuing many state-led and apparently private efforts to build advanced AI models.
The commission’s proposed answer is not a small research initiative. It calls for Congress to provide long-term contracts and funding to leading AI, cloud and data center companies. The purpose would be to make complex research projects feasible by giving major technology players more certainty and access to resources.
The report also recommends that the Secretary of Defense give AI projects a high national priority, known as a DX rating, under the "Defense Priorities and Allocations System." The DX rating is awarded by the DCMA (Defense Contract Management Agency) and identifies programs with "the highest national priority."
Why data sits at the center of the race
The report puts heavy emphasis on data as a foundation for AI capability. It says each country has different advantages in how data is collected, used and made available for AI systems.
China, the report says, understands the value of data for AI and has acted to expand the supply of high-quality data within its AI ecosystem. Examples cited include state-sponsored databases and access to data from state-owned enterprises and government agencies.
That matters because advanced AI systems depend not only on algorithms and computing infrastructure, but also on the availability of useful information. In the commission’s framing, data access is part of national technological power, not just a technical detail.
The report also highlights China’s research and talent pipeline. It says China leads the USA in the sheer volume of published research, with 575,258 articles compared to 359,415 articles in the USA. It also says that since 2018, China has established over 2,000 undergraduate-level AI programs at more than 300 of the country’s most prestigious universities.
Biotechnology, connected devices and strategic access
The commission does not limit its recommendations to AI model development. It also proposes that Congress consider legislation requiring prior approval and oversight of China’s involvement with biotechnology companies in the US.
The areas named include genomic research, pharmaceutical development, and investments in universities and government institutions. The reason given is the growing convergence of biotechnology and AI, including the analysis of large genomic data sets.
The report also calls for significant government investment across the full technology development cycle and supply chain in biotechnology. In this view, biotechnology is part of the same strategic competition because AI can increase the value and sensitivity of biological data and research capabilities.
Beyond biotechnology, the commission encourages restrictions or bans on imports of some technologies and services controlled by Chinese companies. The examples include humanoid robots with advanced capabilities in dexterity, locomotion and intelligence, as well as energy infrastructure products with remote maintenance functions, including load control in the power grid.
The report also says ongoing regulatory projects on "connected vehicles" should be extended to other connected devices from Chinese manufacturers. The listed categories include industrial machinery, IoT devices and household appliances.
Industrial espionage and military AI
The commission links these proposals to concerns about intellectual property, industrial espionage and the leakage of sensitive strategic information. It expects Congress to enact laws prohibiting Chinese investors from receiving board seats and information rights in strategic technology sectors.
The military dimension is also central to the report. It says artificial intelligence will be a core component of China’s future military strategy and will support the People’s Liberation Army’s efforts to exploit vulnerabilities in technology systems used by the US on the battlefield.
The report says China wants to use AI-supported data processing and decision-making to act faster than US armed forces. It also names autonomous weapons systems and cognitive warfare as areas where AI will play a central role.
Taken together, the commission’s recommendations present AGI, biotechnology, data access, robotics, connected infrastructure and investment controls as parts of one strategic picture. The core claim is that technological leadership now depends on funding, supply chains, data, corporate capacity and security rules moving together.
Whether Congress will adopt the proposal remains uncertain. For now, the report signals that some lawmakers and advisers see the AGI race as large enough to justify a national program modeled on one of the most consequential research mobilizations in US history.