Colorado lawmakers seek new AI safeguards

What they're saying: "There's something in the world that now scares me more than Donald Trump," U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Lakewood) says in a statement about AI.

• Pettersen is calling for stronger industry standards, including independent audits and mandatory incident reporting.

Zoom out: Democratic U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper warns "we're entering a new and dangerous era" for AI.

• He co-introduced bipartisan legislation last year aimed at developing standards for how AI systems are built and tested.
• In a statement, Hickenlooper — who says he frequently uses AI — also urges the White House to confront the technology's risks.
• U.S. Rep. Jason Crow (D-Aurora) similarly stressed the need for protections around privacy and national security.

Yes, but: At least one lawmaker questions whether Congress can move quickly enough to keep pace with the technology.

• "Unfortunately, Congress will never be able to move fast enough to do so," Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet says in a statement.
• Still, Bennet proposes creating an independent agency for rule-making and oversight of AI and other platforms.

Across the aisle, U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Fort Lupton) backs legislation calling for "common sense guardrails" to protect consumers.

• The House on Wednesday passed a bill Evans led aimed at curbing AI data center costs.

But his approach also underscores a broader divide over what AI rules should look like.

• Another bill backed by Evans promotes American-developed AI models while imploring federal officials to scrutinize models from foreign adversaries.
• Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank (R-Colorado Springs) put the onus on AI companies, calling for "safety nets" on product development to protect the economy and national security.

U.S. Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-Windsor), Jeff Hurd (R-Grand Junction) and Joe Neguse (D-Lafayette) did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

The bottom line: Many Colorado lawmakers agree AI needs guardrails.

• The fight is over what those rules should look like and whether Washington can get regulation done in time.