Democrats want to lead on AI but struggle to agree on a regulatory path

Democrats are pushing AI regulation as a core campaign issue, but the party has not yet formed a unified plan. At the congressional level, proposals already exist to require AI companies to prevent harmful technologies such as deepfakes, and proposals to pause advanced AI development before establishing a strong federal regulatory agency. Senators Bernie Sanders and Representative Greg Casar proposed in September a permanent ban on superintelligent AI. The party is broadly divided into four factions: existential risk, AI misuse, social impact, and environmental consequences, with disagreements stemming from different judgments about the most urgent dangers.