The California state Senate unanimously passed two pieces of legislation on May 28 that would create an AI risk management standard and a research hub focused on harnessing AI’s full potential.
The first piece of legislation – titled SB-893 California Artificial Intelligence Research Hub – would establish the research hub that will help “serve as a centralized entity to facilitate collaboration between government agencies, academic institutions, and private sector partners to advance AI research and development that seeks to harness the technology’s full potential for public benefit,” according to the bill’s description.
The second piece of legislation – titled SB-892 Public contracts: automated decision systems: AI risk management standards – would require that the state’s Department of Technology work on developing and adopting regulations to create an AI risk management standard.
The bill would require the AI risk management standard to include a detailed risk assessment procedure for procuring automated decision systems (ADS), as well as other methods for appropriate risk controls.
“Protecting Californians is a bipartisan issue,” said Sen. Steve Padilla, who introduced both pieces of legislation.
“We cannot wait on Congress to lead while we wait vulnerable to the whims of tech billionaires. Creating an AI resource that works for the public good rather than for a private capitol’s profit margins means we keep the power of the future in the hands of the many, rather than the few.”
