Battle rages over US’s first binding AI safety bill in California

California is poised to enact the United States’ most significant piece of legislation around artificial intelligence, which could help reshape governance of the technology worldwide.

The bill, called SB 1047, would be the first binding U.S. legislation aimed squarely at preventing AI-linked catastrophes, representing a significant break from the United States’ traditionally hands-off approach to regulating the industry.

It recently cleared California’s legislature with a large majority and is now entirely in the hands of Governor Gavin Newsom, who has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto it.

But the legislation has exposed a deep divide across the tech industry and the political establishment, upending the usual coalitions.

Critics worry it will hurt innovation in California and complain it uses liability to keep companies in check, while providing only vague rules for them to follow. Some say such regulation should be implemented at the federal level.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has allied with Trump-supporting venture capitalists such as Marc Andreessen to kill the bill; billionaire Elon Musk has endorsed it, lining up with powerful labor groups and the feminist group NOW.

Asked to comment on SB 1047, Newsom’s office told the Thomson Reuters Foundation they “don’t typically comment on pending legislation.”
The governor, however, broke his silence on the bill this week, saying he was worried about the “outsized” impact the legislation could have.

“(AI) is a space where we dominate, and I want to maintain our dominance… At the same time, you feel a deep sense of responsibility to address some of those more extreme concerns,” he told the Salesforce conference in San Francisco.

He told the LA Times he had not yet made a decision on the bill.

The United States has lagged global efforts to regulate the technology. The EU passed its sweeping AI Act in 2023, Britain’s new Labour government pledged to introduce “binding regulation” on top AI companies, while experts say China has taken a sharply growing interest in safeguarding against the technology’s extreme risks.