Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) wants to prioritize funding for biotechnology and is hoping to add a White House adviser to coordinate policy on the topic to better compete with China.
“The U.S. needs a strategic plan for biotechnology,” Young will say in a speech on artificial intelligence and biotech today first shared with Punchbowl News. “One way to accomplish that is to make federal agencies work together — with greater efficiency — to support American biotechnology.”
Young’s push comes just days after a commission he chairs issued a report calling for the creation of a White House office to coordinate federal biotechnology efforts. Young also introduced legislation to establish the office.
In addition to the coordinating office, Young will ask his Hill colleagues to “prioritize biotech in terms of our national security funding” in the speech.
Young is the foremost Republican supporting government investments in emerging technologies, including chips and biotech. The stance has put him at odds with President Donald Trump, who has vocally criticized a chips and science law Young championed to boost domestic manufacturing of semiconductors.
Beyond the coordinating office, the biotech commission Young chairs also recommended a fund to invest in startups, creating a network of manufacturing facilities and establishing principles for the ethical use of biotech by the military.
In his speech, Young will speak of a near future where AI and biotech increase farm yields or help create novel treatments for diseases, while also warning about the threats posed by China in this arena.
“In our global power competition, AI and biotechnology may well determine the victor,” Young’s speech says.
