California lawmakers have proposed a new bill to regulate the development of large AI models, requiring safety protocols, oversight, and compliance measures to prevent risks like weapons development and infrastructure damage.
The bill targets major tech companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere, mandating safety testing, risk assessments, a "kill switch" for hazardous models, and disclosure of compliance efforts, with penalties for non-compliance.
The bill garnered support from AI pioneers Geoffrey Hinton and Yoshua Bengio, who recognize the existential risks posed by AI, but has also raised concerns within the tech community, with some workers and founders considering leaving California due to fears of hindering business adoption, innovation, and open-source projects.
Major AI organizations and tech firms are criticizing the bill, arguing that it could drive innovation away from California, lead to excessive liabilities, burden smaller AI firms and open-source developers with compliance requirements, potentially decelerating AI adoption and increasing costs for customers.
The bill has passed the state Senate and awaits a general assembly vote in August, but Governor Gavin Newsom's office has declined to comment on the pending legislation, with Newsom warning against excessive regulation of AI.
Senator Wiener has revised the bill to exempt open-source developers from accountability for negative uses of their platforms. The proposed law also includes creating a government agency to oversee AI developers and provide guidelines for future powerful AI models.
The bill's outcome could impact public trust in AI systems, and industry voices stress the need for accurate regulations to sustain innovation while avoiding increased costs for customers.
California's approach could influence other states, emphasizing the importance of coordinated efforts amid a patchwork of state-level AI bills emerging while federal legislation is pending.
Sources: Ars Technica, New York Post, Bloomberg, exbulletin.com, winbuzzer.com, pymnts.com, techtarget.com, cryptorank.io.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
