California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed two bills Wednesday that set new rules supported by OpenAI and Anthropic for how outside groups evaluate AI systems for safety, capping a week in which a former Anthropic and OpenAI researcher’s public exit stoked fears about the technology’s risks.
Politico reports that one bill creates a registry and ethical standards for third-party auditors that AI developers can hire to check whether their models comply with state AI laws. The other directs the state to set criteria for and verify the credentials of what the bill calls Independent Verification Organizations, which assess AI risks.
Anthropic backed both bills in August. OpenAI held off until Wednesday, announcing its support just before Newsom signed the legislation.
The signing came days after Jacob Coxon, a former researcher at both Anthropic and OpenAI, posted about his resignation on social media in a message that quickly went viral. Coxon has said he believes AI companies are racing toward superintelligent AI and “gambling” with people’s lives. His posts pushed federal lawmakers to step up calls for legislative action.
Asked about Coxon’s resignation and his warning about a race toward superintelligent AI, Newsom said in a statement to POLITICO: “The concerns raised in recent incidents reinforce what California has long recognized: artificial intelligence holds extraordinary promise, but it must be developed and deployed with meaningful safeguards to protect the public.” He also called on Washington to “step forward with robust, national regulations that match the urgency of this moment.”
An Anthropic spokesperson said Wednesday: “We have always been transparent that AI will bring both enormous benefits and unprecedented risks. To address these risks, we continue to build models with some of the strongest safeguards in the industry … This work is also why we believe the world would benefit from the industry adopting a lawful, verifiable way to work together to pace how we release powerful models.”
Chris Lehane, OpenAI’s chief global affairs officer, said the company intends to keep pushing for AI safety measures in state legislatures until Congress passes national regulation. Lehane also endorsed two other California bills, including SB 1119, which addresses safety for chatbots aimed at children. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had reached out to Newsom with last-minute concerns about SB 1119 before it was signed.
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Read more at Politico here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of AI, free speech, and online censorship.