Why Are Palantir and OpenAI Scared of Alex Bores?

Alex Bores, a New York State Assembly member and former Palantir employee, examines the escalating tension between democratic governance and the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence. The discussion centers on the "RAISE Act," a pioneering AI safety law Bores authored, and the subsequent aggressive political opposition he faces from industry-funded Super PACs. Bores argues for a proactive regulatory framework that includes third-party audits, safety reporting, and an "AI dividend" to mitigate mass job displacement through mechanisms like universal basic income and token taxes. He highlights the immediate risks AI poses to children’s mental health and educational integrity while proposing that government must modernize its own archaic technical infrastructure to harness AI for public goods like drug discovery and grid resilience. Ultimately, the conversation positions Bores’s congressional campaign as a litmus test for whether legislators can effectively regulate powerful tech interests without being silenced by concentrated industry capital.