Nancy Pelosi criticizes California AI bill as ‘ill informed’

Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi issued a statement late yesterday laying out her opposition to SB 1047, a California bill that seeks to regulate AI.

“The view of many of us in Congress is that SB 1047 is well-intentioned but ill informed,” Pelosi said. She noted that other congresspeople from the Bay Area — Zoe Lofgren, Anna Eshoo, and Ro Khanna — have expressed concerns about the bill, which she described as “more harmful than helpful.”

The bill was recently amended to address concerns from critics including AI company Anthropic and is currently headed to California’s Assembly for a vote. Since this is a state bill, Pelosi and others in Congress don’t have any official say — though Pelosi’s seniority and profile are likely to give her opinion weight with California politicians.

“AI springs from California,” she said. “We must have legislation that is a model for the nation and the world. We have the opportunity and responsibility to enable small entrepreneurs and academia – not big tech – to dominate.”