California Governor Vetoes AI Safety Bill

California Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed Senate Bill 1047, an AI safety bill aimed at enforcing safety measures for companies developing large-scale AI models, citing concerns over its potential to stifle innovation and its applicability only to high-cost models. The bill, which would have required safety testing and incident reporting, faced heavy lobbying from tech giants and startups, with critics arguing it could hinder California's leading position in AI development. Newsom expressed that the bill's stringent requirements could impose unnecessary burdens even on basic functions of AI systems and fail to address risks posed by smaller models. In response to the veto, he plans to collaborate with industry experts to create more effective regulations that consider the rapid evolution of AI technology. Senator Scott Wiener, the bill's author, condemned the veto as a setback for public safety, emphasizing the need for proactive regulation before potential catastrophes occur. The veto highlights the ongoing tension between fostering technological advancement and ensuring public safety in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.