California Governor Gavin Newsom’s latest move to increase independent scrutiny of AI could mark a significant step toward regulating some of the technology’s most advanced systems, according to experts at UCLA.
The executive order, signed September 18, asks the state’s Government Operations Agency to consult with national specialists and develop proposals for AI safety laws by November 16. The directive follows a series of concerns about increasingly autonomous AI systems, including a July cybersecurity exercise in which hundreds of AI agents targeted Hugging Face.
Among the measures under consideration is a requirement for major AI developers to employ outside organizations to independently assess the safety of their most sophisticated models. The proposal also calls for faster development of an emergency shutdown system. Under the plan, an independent group would regularly evaluate whether such a mechanism remains effective.
Newsom has argued that California is well positioned to shape AI policy due to the state’s dominant role in the sector. Thirty-two of the world’s 50 largest privately held AI firms are headquartered in California.
The latest directive is the fifth AI-focused executive action Newsom has issued since 2023. Earlier orders have directed state agencies to examine the effects and challenges associated with rapidly developing AI technologies.
The announcement came amid growing warnings from prominent technology executives about the speed of AI development. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has urged companies to moderate the pace of advancement, citing concerns about the risks posed by increasingly capable systems. Sam Altman and Elon Musk have also expressed agreement with some of those concerns.
UCLA lecturer Sanford Williams noted that an emergency shutdown mechanism could help limit harm if an AI system behaves unexpectedly. He also warned that widespread AI use could affect students’ critical-thinking abilities and deepen inequalities for people who lack reliable internet connections or suitable devices.
Williams said the scale and importance of AI require strong government oversight, arguing that federal authorities ultimately need to play a central role.
Public policy lecturer Ajwang Rading said regulation could preserve meaningful human control over increasingly powerful systems. He said governments still have an opportunity to establish safeguards before potential risks become harder to manage.
Meanwhile, Stop AI co-founder Valerie Sizemore disagreed with the approach. She argued that a shutdown mechanism does not directly address the dangers posed by AI and suggested California consider legal action to halt further development until independent safety protections are established.
Her comments followed Florida AG James Uthmeier’s request for a temporary injunction against OpenAI. In a September 28 filing, Uthmeier alleged that the company had not adequately evaluated or disclosed risks associated with ChatGPT.
Sizemore also questioned whether people could reliably recognize when an AI system has become dangerous enough to warrant shutting it down, saying dependence on the technology could make such warnings difficult to identify.
As the debate over how best to regulate the AI industry intensifies, many businesses, such as D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS), in the tech space will be hoping that agreement is reached quickly so that focus can shift to how to advance the technology to maximize its benefits.
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