Gov. Ron DeSantis rallied for Florida’s rural areas and warned about the dangers of artificial intelligence in a speech at the Florida Rural Economic Development Summit.
DeSantis spoke about a wide range of topics during his talk, including a warning about the rise of artificial intelligence.
“Whoever’s saying how great it’s going to be, there’s going to be big pitfalls too. I mean at best, right?” DeSantis said.
Those pitfalls could be that “people don’t even know what’s real,” or college-educated, white-collar employees being replaced by AI, DeSantis said.
“People are saying that, as AI advances, that it’s going to really undercut a lot of jobs,” DeSantis said. “I don’t think that’s a good thing. … I know it’s one of the reasons why I don’t think we should be subsidizing it. Why would we subsidize something that could potentially cause problems for folks?”
He quipped how his children aren’t fans of the AI-generated songs his wife, First Lady Casey DeSantis, makes about the family going to the park.
Meanwhile, DeSantis promoted his focus as Governor, saying he has visited all 67 counties in the state, the first time a candidate has done so.
“I remember going to some of the counties … a lady just pinched me and it’s like, ‘I’ve never seen a Governor before come to these parts,’” DeSantis recalled. “I was like, ‘Well, here I am in the flesh.’”
DeSantis said a focus of his administration had been in rural infrastructure investments as he spoke to the friendly crowd.
“The money goes a lot further when you’re helping with things in rural Florida,” DeSantis said. “People appreciate it. They remember that you showed up and you took an interest in their community.”
DeSantis did not take questions from the press afterward.