Behind Silicon Valley and the GOP’s campaign to ban state AI laws

Summary

Greetings all,Today, we dive deep into the GOP’s radical campaign to ban US states from passing any laws that govern AI. Even in a political moment as fraught as ours, this one stands out. We’ll get into:How a proposal to ban AI lawmaking wound up in the budget reconciliation bill the same week that AI execs took a trip with Trump to Saudi ArabiaHow the GOP plans to try to sell its state AI ban, according to the GOPA look at what the implications are for AI in generalAn interview at the end with California Assemblyman Isaac Bryan, author and co-sponsor of some of the AI bills Silicon Valley wants deadI’m not going to lie, this was a dark week, and a tough one to report through—I meant to publish this on Tuesday, then Wednesday, and the new twists and revelations in how this campaign came together just kept piling up. It took many hours to research, investigate, and write this story. To that end, Blood in the Machine is 100% reader supported, and made possible by paid subscribers. If you find value in this work, and if you can, your support would be immensely appreciated. On Sunday, May 11th, Republicans added a sweeping amendment to the 2025 budget reconciliation bill that would ban all US states from enacting any laws regulating AI for ten years. Reconciliation is a common way for a party to try to push through controversial or unpopular legislation that might not survive a regular Senate vote (budgets can’t be filibustered, and need just a simple majority to pass). Even so, this amendment, put forward by the Kentucky congressman and energy and commerce committee chair Brett Guthrie, managed to shock.The amendment drew admonitory headlines, consternation in Democrats, and anger and disbelief on social media. The outcry is well deserved. The bill’s language is not ambiguous. It says that “no State or political subdivision thereof may enforce any law or regulation regulating artificial intelligence models, artificial intelligence systems, or automated decision system...