(AFP) – Meta is launching a political action committee in California to support candidates who favor lighter regulation of artificial intelligence in the state that is home to Silicon Valley. The tech world powerhouse on Tuesday confirmed plans for a super-PAC called Mobilizing Economic Transformation Across California dedicated to backing pro-AI candidates regardless of party affiliation.
“As home to many of the world’s leading AI companies, California’s innovation economy has an outsized impact on America’s economic growth, job creation, and global competitiveness,” a Meta spokesperson told AFP. “But Sacramento’s regulatory environment could stifle innovation, block AI progress, and put California’s technology leadership at risk.”
According to Meta, state-level regulation of AI threatens to hamper development of the technology at a time when US tech firms are in a fierce innovation race with Chinese rivals. The tech industry is lobbying hard to avoid regulation of AI’s development, and in July it narrowly failed to win a federal ban by US Congress that would have prevented states from passing or enforcing AI laws for as long as a decade.
Meta pointed to the more than 50 AI-related bills that have been introduced this year in California alone, many of which could hinder advancement of the technology, the company claimed. One such law, which will be effective on January 1, requires developers of generative AI with large user bases to disclose summaries of training data, provide free AI detection tools, and ensure clear labeling of AI-generated content.
© 2024 AFP
