Kamala Harris<\/p>\n
Former vice-president and the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee<\/p>\n
Harris has long advocated for guardrails around AI while also promoting growth in the US, but she has more recently echoed calls for a slowdown in development.<\/p>\n
Kamala Harris discusses her new memoir 107 Days at the Southbank Centre\u2019s London Literature Festival in London in 2025. Photograph: James Manning\/PA<\/p>\n
As vice-president, Harris led the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to understand and mitigate the risks of AI. In 2023, she had voiced concerns<\/a> about the short-term risks posed by AI, such as the threat to democracy through disinformation and dissemination, as well as privacy.<\/p>\n On 14 September, Harris reiterated the need for stricter federal regulations <\/a>around artificial intelligence after tech executives called for a slowdown in AI development.<\/p>\n Gavin Newsom<\/p>\n Newsom has pushed for stricter AI regulation in his state, where many tech companies, such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, are based.<\/p>\n Gavin Newsom speaks at the Center for American Progress Ideas conference at in Washington DC on 19 May 2026. Photograph: Annabelle Gordon\/Reuters<\/p>\n Though the governor has promoted<\/a> AI advancements in California, he has incrementally added safeguards: requiring large companies to publish best practices, adding whistleblower protections, including safeguards for young users, mandating a study to help companies retain employees rather than replace them, and more.<\/p>\n In September, Newsom signed an executive order<\/a> urging companies to consider creating a \u201ckill switch\u201d after tech executives voiced concerns over the possibility that AI could harm humans.<\/p>\n Josh Shapiro <\/p>\n Shapiro has taken a middle-ground approach to AI development and datacenter construction, advocating for technology investment with clear regulations to reduce harm.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to be clear: I am not a doomer. I don\u2019t think it is inevitable that AI is going to take over the world or that someone will misuse it to kill us or do harm. But I do have real concerns, as do many Pennsylvanians and many Americans,\u201d Shapiro said at an AI summit <\/a>in September.<\/p>\n Josh Shapiro during a Kamala Harris for President event at Wissahickon high school in Ambler, Pennsylvania, on 29 July 2024. Photograph: Sarah Yenesel\/EPA<\/p>\n Shapiro was an early adopter of AI development, championing AI investment <\/a>in his state in 2024.<\/p>\n But he called<\/a> for stricter federal regulations around the technology in September and signed an executive order <\/a>in August to ensure datacenters are meeting stricter environmental and energy usage standards.<\/p>\n Andy Beshear<\/p>\n Beshear has enacted policies in Kentucky to regulate the construction of datacenters and recently called for stronger federal oversight on AI.<\/p>\n Andy Beshear during a talk about his newly published book at George Washington University in Washington DC on 22 September 2026. Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein\/Reuters<\/p>\n In August, Beshear signed an executive order<\/a> requiring datacenter developers to ensure they won\u2019t have a detrimental impact on the environment and taxpayers, among other necessities, before building.<\/p>\n He also called for the end of taxpayer incentives.<\/p>\n Mark Kelly<\/p>\n Kelly has called for safely implemented AI in the US through congressional action and called for protections for workers whose jobs are affected by AI.<\/p>\n Last year, Kelly published a roadmap<\/a> suggesting the government create an \u201cAI Horizon Fund\u201d backed by AI companies, that would finance education and training tools, support energy infrastructure and assist displaced employees.<\/p>\n Mark Kelly speaks at the National Action Network\u2019s annual convention on 11 April 2026 in New York City. Photograph: David Dee Delgado\/Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cI do believe there are benefits, and they could be significant,\u201d Kelly told Politico<\/a> in September. \u201cI also see the national security implications of not getting this right and not being the leader.\u201d<\/p>\n Kelly told Politico he planned to introduce legislation establishing the fund.<\/p>\n Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez<\/p>\n Congresswoman from New York<\/p>\n Ocasio-Cortez has had concerns about the economic impact of AI <\/a>and datacenters and voiced skepticism about the rapid expansion and integration of the technology.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re talking about a massive economic bubble,\u201d Ocasio-Cortez said during a House hearing last year.<\/p>\n In June, the progressive representative introduced companion legislation<\/a> alongside senator Bernie Sanders that would temporarily prohibit the construction of datacenters until Congress produces legislation to create guardrails for the environmental, safety and economic impacts of AI.<\/p>\n lexandria Ocasio-Cortez attends a news conference with Bernie Sanders to announce the Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act in the US Capitol on 25 March 2026. Photograph: Tom Williams\/CQ-Roll Call, Inc\/Getty Images<\/p>\n She has also voiced opposition to harms caused by AI such as deepfake pornography.<\/p>\n Ocasio-Cortez also pushed back on Trump\u2019s claim that only those who are \u201cbackwards and poor\u201d would oppose datacenters being built in their communities.<\/p>\n \u201cHow about we put one in Mar-a-Lago?\u201d Ocasio-Cortez responded.<\/a><\/p>\n Ro Khanna<\/p>\n Congressman from California<\/p>\n Khanna, a progressive Democrat who represents Silicon Valley, has called for stricter federal regulations on AI, specifically suggesting that the US reach an agreement with China on basic guardrails.<\/p>\n Ro Khanna speak to reporters outside the Department of Justice offices in Washington DC on9 February 2026. Photograph: Bonnie Cash\/UPI\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n \u201cThe American people are deeply concerned about the future of AI and the potential risks,\u201d Khanna said in a statement to the Guardian. \u201cWe urgently need an agreement with China on basic inspections and safety standards.\u201d<\/p>\n Khanna has compared winning the AI race to \u201cwinning a nuclear war\u201d and said basic safety and misuse standards should be put into place before the US and China compete. But he has also resisted<\/a> calls from progressive leaders like Sanders to impose a moratorium<\/a> on the expansion of AI datacenters.<\/p>\n Pete Buttigieg <\/p>\n Former secretary of transportation and mayor of South Bend, Indiana<\/p>\n Buttigieg has voiced concerns about AI\u2019s harms for years, but more recently criticized the federal government for not moving fast enough to regulate the quickly evolving technology.<\/p>\n As early as 2017<\/a>, Buttigieg warned AI could hurt US jobs or have other negative implications.<\/p>\n Pete Buttigieg speaks at a rally for Democratic candidates at Centennial high school in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on 13 September 2026. Photograph: Brian Cahn\/ZUMA Press Wire\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n