OpenAI's 'Reverse Federalism' Lobbying Shapes State AI Laws Nationwide
OpenAI's state-by-state lobbying blitz aims to create a de facto national AI policy.
OpenAI is leaning into a state-by-state lobbying strategy it calls 'reverse federalism' to shape AI regulation in the absence of federal guidance. The company, led by chief global affairs officer Chris Lehane, has already helped pass AI safety laws in California and New York that it endorsed. Now it is pushing a similar audit requirement bill in Illinois. Rival Anthropic is quietly working against OpenAI's preferred bill, creating a direct policy clash between the two largest AI labs.
This coordinated state-level push follows the cancellation of a Trump executive order that would have created voluntary federal AI safety reviews—Trump reportedly scrapped it to avoid hindering America's AI competition with China. With no national framework, companies like OpenAI and Anthropic are effectively writing their own rules. Tech firms spent roughly $40 million on California lobbying alone last year, and millions more are flowing to pro-AI super PACs. The result: the companies that need regulation are the ones dictating its terms.
- OpenAI is using a 'reverse federalism' approach to pass similar AI safety laws in multiple states, starting with California and New York.
- The company is now targeting Illinois with an audit-requirement bill, while Anthropic backs a competing version.
- Trump's disinterest in federal AI regulation and a canceled executive order have left states as the primary regulatory arena, where tech firms spent $40 million lobbying in California last year.
Why It Matters
AI giants are shaping their own oversight rules state by state, bypassing federal gridlock and setting regulatory precedents.