The exclusive Democratic group chat shaping AI policy
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Democratic state lawmakers across the U.S. are quietly coordinating AI policy and comparing notes on industry lobbying in a private Signal group chat called "Frontier AI Legislators," multiple members told Axios.
Why it matters: The group shares and tweaks bill language and swaps insights about industry pressure, aiming to help shape national standards for AI as Congress and the White House try to land their own plans.
The big picture: AI super PACs pushing for lighter regulation are spending record amounts against state candidates who are backing tougher rules, as thousands of state-level AI bills are introduced.
- AI and tech companies, in response, are dispatching lobbyists to statehouses at unprecedented rates.
- Enter the group chat, where lawmakers try to figure out how to deal with that.
Zoom in: New York State Assembly Member Alex Bores, who's running for Congress in New York's 12th District, founded the group last year.
- The chat has nine members representing New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, Colorado, Vermont, California and Rhode Island.
- At least two members of the group are running for national office: Bores and California state Sen. Scott Wiener.
What they're saying: "We realized that the lobbyists were going state by state, and sometimes saying different things to different people," Bores said in an interview.
- "We all fundamentally agree that the best path forward [on AI] is one where we're somewhat coordinated ... there'll be times where we should be different, but those should be intentional."
- The group "just became a way to share information, to share advice and to coordinate on a national standard given the failures of Congress to do that," he said.
Another member, Vermont state Rep. Monique Priestley, said the Signal group helped her feel less intimidated to work on AI bills that would invite intense industry lobbying.
- "It's often one or two people in a state house that are trying to lead, and they're often going up against the biggest entities in the world. So it can be a very isolating experience," Priestley said in an interview.
- "It's been incredible to say: Hey, this is happening right now. Are you experiencing the same thing?"
- California state Assembly Member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan told Axios that the Signal group helps lawmakers compare what they're hearing: "Are the lobbyists telling us all the same things? Are they telling us different things? Is there consistency? What is real?"
The intrigue: Bores said that while he and his co-sponsor were working on New York's AI safety law, the RAISE Act, they decided to punt what they perceived as a "weakened" section on third-party audits and save it for another bill.
- Why? Partly because the fellow AI group members said they were concerned it would become the ceiling for future third-party audit legislation, Bores said.
- "That allowed us to think about where some of the lobbyists would use provisions against us in other places, and really have a nationwide conversation," he said.
What we're watching: There are currently no Republican members of the group.
