It turns out that when an AI-friendly super PAC with $100 million in backing from Silicon Valley influencers names you as its first target, it will get a lot of attention.
“I want to thank you [the PAC] for partnering in elevating the regulation of an incredibly powerful technology so that the future benefits us all,” says Alex Bores, New York Assembly member and Democratic congressional candidate, in an interview with WIRED. “I couldn’t imagine a better partner this week.”
Earlier this year, Bores and New York State Sen. Andrew Gounardes co-sponsored the RAISE Act, a bill that would authorize the New York Attorney General to impose civil penalties of up to $30 million on artificial intelligence developers like OpenAI and Google if they fail to publish security reports on their technology.
The RAISE Act passed the New York Legislature in June and is expected to be signed or vetoed by Gov. Kathy Hochul before the end of the year. It’s one of the few state AI security bills across the country that seeks to regulate AI developers — even as the Trump administration is preparing an executive order aimed at thwarting AI regulation at the state level.
This effort placed Bores in the crosshairs of the Leading the Future initiative. In addition to support from Andreessen Horowitz, Andreessen Horowitz, the recently formed PAC is also funded by OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale.
Andreessen Horowitz declined WIRED’s request for comment. Brockman and Lonsdale did not respond to WIRED’s request for comment.
Leading the Future plans to spend millions of dollars to thwart Bores’ congressional bid. “Assemblyman Bores advanced exactly the type of ideological and politically motivated legislation that would shackle not only New York, but the entire country, in its ability to lead on AI jobs and innovation,” PAC leaders Zac Moffatt and Josh Vlasto said in a statement to WIRED. They added that the PAC will “aggressively oppose policymakers and candidates in states across the country” who threaten “Americans’ ability to benefit from artificial intelligence.” However, they refused to specify further goals.
Bores believes its technical problems threaten the artificial intelligence industry. The New York MP holds a master’s degree in computer science from Georgia Tech. He also worked as an engineer at Palantir for four years before resigning in 2019 amid a contract the company renewed with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“What scares Trump megadonors most is that I really understand artificial intelligence,” he says.