Gavin Newsom Issues Executive Order to Investigate Generative Artificial Intelligence in California
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order directing state agencies to examine the potential risks and applications of generative AI, in a move to address the potential regulation of this technology in the home state of influential AI companies.
According to the order, state agencies are tasked with identifying “the most significant and beneficial uses of GenAI in the state” and creating a framework for training state employees to use “state-approved” generative AI tools in their work. Likewise, it directs the same agencies to analyze the technology’s potential negative impacts, including its impact on vulnerable communities and threats to the state’s “critical energy infrastructure.”
The order also sets the stage for new partnerships with the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University to help study how generative artificial intelligence will impact the state’s workforce. “This is a potentially transformative technology — comparable to the advent of the Internet — and we’re only scratching the surface of what GenAI is capable of,” Newsom said in a statement. “We recognize the potential benefits and risks of these tools.”
As Bloomberg points out, the California order comes ahead of a White House executive order on generative artificial intelligence, which is expected in the coming months. Executives from several leading AI companies have met with White House officials over the past several months as the administration weighs potential AI regulations. More than half a dozen companies have already agreed to some guarantees, including new investments in cybersecurity, after those meetings.
