AI Now Institute

People's AI Action Plan

The White House released its AI Action plan this morning. We know where it came from: straight from Big Tech. But there’s another path available to us: we and over 100 other orgs called for a People’s AI Action Plan. Read it here: peoplesaiaction.com
apnews.com/article/trum...

@fightforthefuture.org, @localprogress.bsky.social, @mediajustice.bsky.social, @nelp.org, @openmicmedia.bsky.social, @powerswitchaction.org, @publiccitizen.bsky.social, @techworkerscoalition.org, @upturn.org

Thanks to supporters, including: @ainowinstitute.bsky.social, @aaup.org, @aft.org, @athenaforall.bsky.social, @aiainetwork.bsky.social, @biologicaldiversity.org, @datasociety.bsky.social, @demandprogress.bsky.social, @dredf.bsky.social, @dairinstitute.bsky.social, @economicsecurityproject.org

The 90+ organizations supporting a People's AI Action Plan all have concrete, actionable ideas for an AI agenda that furthers the interests of everyday people and challenges the tech billionaire agenda we’ll see from the White House. Learn more about them: peoplesaiaction.com

NYC Book Launch: Empire of AI On June 2nd AI Now hosted two of the sharpest thinkers on tech power: Columbia law professor and former FTC Chair Lina Khan joined Karen Hao for a conversation about AI at an event to celebrate the la...

The book Empire of AI likewise charts OpenAI’s history, piercing through the company’s culture of secrecy to show how it contributes to global inequality. We hosted @karenhao.bsky.social in conversation with former FTC Chair Lina Khan earlier this summer: ainowinstitute.org/news/announc...

AI Generated Business: The Rise of AGI and the Rush to Find a Working Revenue Model By Brian Merchant In This Article Introduction OpenAI and the Generative AI Boom Silicon Valley Mythology, Distilled and Accelerated From “Safe AI” to AGI — and the Hype-Led Business Model Genesis Mar...

And while you’re at it - also read @bcmerchant.bsky.social's excellent AI Now report AI Generated Business, on how OpenAI has used narratives around AGI (front and center in this report) to inflate its business proposition: ainowinstitute.org/publications...

Artificial Power: 2025 Landscape Report In the aftermath of the “AI boom,” this report examines how the push to integrate AI products everywhere grants AI companies - and the tech oligarchs that run them - power that goes far beyond their d...

This isn’t the only path available to us. In our recent report Artificial Power we document how AI cos have rigged the market to work in their favor, how communities around the world are being affected by AI today, and outlining a roadmap for change: ainowinstitute.org/publications...

As our work attests, tech cos like OpenAI are setting us on a path to a future that disenfranchises the public, renders systems more obscure to those it affects, devalues our crafts, undermines our security, and narrows our horizon for innovation. This is true whether or not the tech even works well

Today the OpenAI Nonprofit Commission released a report asserting OpenAI is ‘positioned to be a force of good in this Age of Intelligence’. The report also claims that AI Now was among the orgs participating in the listening process that led to this report. We did not.

The Maybe

AI Now Co-Executive Directors @smw.bsky.social and @ambakak.bsky.social sat down with @alixdunn.com at @themaybe.org to discuss the key takeaways from Artificial Power, @ainowinstitute.bsky.social's 2025 landscape report.

Listen to the full podcast episode here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/maki...

Facebook blocked my family. We have no idea why. - The Boston Globe The real problem with AI is unchecked corporate power.

Big Tech’s power "is contingent on a public that is submissive [and] passive,” as @ambakak.bsky.social says in Brian Bergstein’s @bostonglobe.com piece. But that's changing. The public is reasserting power and demanding a say in our technological future.

shorturl.at/i8cf5

Why the AI moratorium’s defeat may signal a new political era A diverse group of politicians came together to beat back a 10-year moratorium on state and local governments’ right to regulate AI. Here's why that matters.

The AI moratorium defeat is a win. Now it’s time to build on this momentum towards enforceable protections. @ambakak.bsky.social spoke to Grace Huckins on what's ahead: “It’s easier for all of us to agree on what we don’t want. The harder question is: What is it that we do want?"

shorturl.at/1LPy6

. @kate-brennan.bsky.social sat down with
@novasafo.bsky.social at Marketplace to speak about algorithmic decision systems’ impact on people's everyday lives, like deciding whether someone qualifies for a bank loan or whether a rental application is approved.

www.marketplace.org/episode/2025...

“[There’s] been this discourse that emerges at moments when AI is being more stringently regulated around there being an arms race between the US and China.” @smw.bsky.social sat down with @moreperfectunion.bsky.social about Big Tech’s consolidation of power and more.

Many AI firms have coasted on the assurance they can experiment in the wild without worrying much about compliance with existing law - now we all agree a 10 year ban would be a wildly irresponsible move, it’s time for policymakers to get down to business (for real this time)

Excellent primer on the mythologies that sustain Big Tech AI power with @smw.bsky.social, @bcmerchant.bsky.social, and @ruchowdh.bsky.social on @moreperfectunion.bsky.social.

The GOP bill that would unleash AI is getting closer to passing. AI Now's Amba Kak says the plan keeps getting worse. A wide swath of groups and lawmakers from across the political spectrum have raised alarms about the proposal to ban state-level regulations of AI for the next five years.

.@ambakak.bsky.social spoke to Hard Reset: “It's close to impossible to play catch up and regulate the tech industry once these corrosive and harmful business models have already entrenched themselves. That's what we risk in this present moment." Read it: hardresetmedia.substack.com/p/the-gop-bi...

Senators Came to Their Senses on AI Regulation Ban The states have stepped in repeatedly to fill the void created by inaction in Washington and have a vital role to play.

A 99–1 Senate vote against a 10-year AI regulation ban is a win for democracy and public safety. As @ambakak.bsky.social told @davelee.me at @bloomberg.com, we’ve seen what happens when tech regulation waits and we can’t afford to fall behind.

Read more here: www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

1/ The government is fielding AI to gather intelligence, patrol borders, and fight wars. My latest in @lawfaremedia.org explains how Congress should step up its scrutiny of the ways taxpayer dollars are spent on acquiring and developing these systems: www.lawfaremedia.org/article/narr...

Uber's Inequality Machine Data on How AI-Driven Pay is Harming Workers and What We Can Do to Push Back

As AI plays an increasingly important role in our lives, a new survey by @powerswitchaction.org shines a light on the experiences of Uber drivers. The results paint a bleak picture of what it’s like when AI decides your pay, outlining what’s at stake for all working people if we don’t take action.

.@ambakak.bsky.social argues that the 10-year moratorium on state AI regulation is an unfair bargain for bipartisan lawmakers whose districts rely on BEAD funding.

Read more in @politifact.bsky.social: www.politifact.com/article/2025/jun/17/state-AI-laws-moratorium-reconciliation-bill

Using AI for targeting when accuracy levels are as low as 60% is little better than a flip of a coin - we need to be more responsible about military use, warns @heidykhlaaf.bsky.social during an @icrc.org webinar on AI in Military Decision Making.

TODAY, June 24th, at 5:00 PM ET | 2:00 PM PT.

There’s still time to register here: mediajustice.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

We recently published Artificial Power: 2025 Landscape Report. It’s an all-in-one resource to explain why it’s troubling for tech companies to push AI into every corner of our social, political, and economic lives.

Read it here: ainowinstitute.org/publications...

Nvidia’s ‘Sovereign’ AI Could Win a Prize for Irony The global scramble for chips risks entrenching new tech dependencies in Europe.

What does it mean for Europe to claim AI “sovereignty” atop global supply chains and US-owned chips? @leevisaari.bsky.social shares with @bloomberg.com: what’s on offer increasingly resembles “sovereignty-as-a-service.”

Read Lionel Laurent's story here: www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

The war is on for Congress’ AI law ban ‘It’s turning the clock back, and it’s freezing it there.‘

A 10-year federal ban on state AI regulation is moving through Congress, which would roll back protections and halt future safeguards. @haydenfield.bsky.social shares what’s at stake in this sharp @theverge.com piece with contributions from @ambakak.bsky.social.

www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...

Today’s AI isn’t just being used by us, it’s being used on us. We need to reclaim public power over the future trajectory of AI. In our 2025 report we offer a policy roadmap for how to regulate AI in favor of the public interest.

Read the report: ainowinstitute.org/2025-landscape

the proposed moratorium on state AI laws is dangerous. a welcome chorus (with unlikely allies!) is rising against the ban. our latest in @techpolicypress.bsky.social argues we must use this momentum to demand more accountability from AI firms and protect against weak, industry co-opted regulation

The Storm Clouds Looming Past the State Moratorium: Weak Regulation is as Bad as None | TechPolicy.Press Blind trust in the benevolence of AI firms is not an option, write AI Now Institute's Kate Brennan, Sarah Myers West, and Amba Kak.

A fight lies ahead to stop the AI law moratorium and defend states’ rights to protect their people. Unconventional alliances may form, but we can’t waver on the long game. The public must set the terms for AI accountability. Read our warning in TPP: shorturl.at/1pS1Q

Instead of debating how “good” technologies like ChatGPT are, we should be asking whether the AI industry’s unaccountable power is good for society.

Read our 2025 Landscape Report: ainowinstitute.org/2025-landscape