Tesla and xAI CEO Elon Musk has voiced his support for California’s AI safety bill, which is expected to bring increased oversight and regulation to the emerging industry.
In a post on X on Monday, as Silicon Valley debated whether AI safety legislation would hinder the development of the technology or whether it was a necessary safeguard, Musk said California’s bill, SB 1047, “will probably pass.”
“This is a difficult call and it will upset some people, but all things considered, I think California should probably pass SB 1047, the AI Safety Bill,” Musk wrote. “For over 20 years, I have advocated for regulating AI, just as I would any product or technology that poses a potential risk to the public.”
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SB 1047 would impose reporting requirements on information security issues for developers of the largest AI models (those costing at least $100 million) and require them to submit reports assessing the risks associated with the models. The bill also creates a new agency in California called the Frontier Models Division (FMD).
“AI technology continues to advance rapidly with the potential to provide enormous benefits to humanity. We can support that innovation without compromising safety, and SB 1047 aims to do just that,” said Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a co-author of the bill. “By focusing requirements on well-resourced developers of the largest and most powerful frontier models, SB 1047 puts in place sensible guardrails against risk while allowing startups to innovate freely without new burdens.”
The bill has now been approved by the California Assembly Appropriations Committee and will now go to the full Assembly for a final vote. If it passes, it will head to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk, who must sign it into law by the end of the month.
CalMatters shared some details about the bill last week, which you can read here .
Musk has previously warned about the safety of AI, telling lawmakers in September that AI could pose a “civilisational risk” if not regulated.
Interestingly, the bill was opposed by OpenAI, run by Musk rival Sam Altman, in an open letter written by OpenAI’s chief strategy officer Jason Kwon last week, in which the executive said the bill would slow innovation and drive developers out of California.
“The AI revolution is just beginning, and California’s unique position as a global leader in AI will boost the vitality of our state’s economy,” Kwon said. MSN“SB 1047 will threaten that growth, slow the pace of innovation, and lead California’s world-class engineers and entrepreneurs to leave the state in search of greater opportunities,” OpenAI chief strategy officer John F. Kelly said in the letter.
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