California’s new AI safety law shows regulation and innovation don’t have to clash

Summary

SB 53, the AI safety and transparency bill that California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law this week, is proof that state regulation doesn’t have to hinder AI progress. So says Adam Billen, vice president of public policy at youth-led advocacy group Encode AI, on today’s episode of Equity. “The reality is that policy makers themselves know that we have to do something, and they know from working on a million other issues that there is a way to pass legislation that genuinely does protect innovation — which I do care about — while making sure that these products are safe,” Billen told TechCrunch. At its core, SB 53 is a first-in-the-nation bill that requires large AI labs to be transparent about their safety and security protocols — specifically around how they prevent their models from catastrophic risks, like being used to commit cyberattacks on critical infrastructure or build bio-weapons. The law also mandates that companies stick to those protocols, which will be enforced by the Office of Emergency Services. “Companies are already doing the stuff that we ask them to do in this bill,” Billen told TechCrunch. “They do safety testing on their models. They release model cards. Are they starting to skimp in some areas at some companies? Yes. And that’s why bills like this are important.” Billen also noted that some AI firms have a policy around relaxing safety standards under competitive pressure. OpenAI, for example, has publicly stated that it may “adjust” its safety requirements if a rival AI lab releases a high-risk system without similar safeguards. Billen argues that policy can enforce companies’ existing safety promises, preventing them from cutting corners under competitive or financial pressure. While public opposition to SB 53 was muted in comparison to its predecessor SB 1047, which Newsom vetoed last year, the rhetoric in Silicon Valley and among most AI labs has been that almost any AI regulation is anathema to progress and will ultimately hinder the U...