Elizabeth Warren: Tax AI companies to benefit all Americans

Driving the news: Warren argues in a Wednesday Time op-ed that the current tax code penalizes hiring people through payroll taxes while subsidizing investments in technology.

• "That's wrong. We need to level the playing field by raising taxes on corporations and capital gains and closing corporate loopholes," she wrote.
• Warren proposes imposing a wealth tax on billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman and a "reasonable" excise tax on data center energy usage.

The big picture: Warren says that the government should tax AI companies and data centers to help protect workers from potential job losses and fund programs such as universal health care, free education and stronger unemployment insurance.

"We can't be afraid to consider even bigger and bolder proposals to tax AI too, including ideas that sound radical today but may quickly become common sense," Warren wrote.

• "Because here's what I see clearly: if we overhaul our tax code and tax AI, we can use that money to build a country that works for everyone."