Two high-profile progressive lawmakers are introducing a bill Wednesday that would pause new data centers in the United States until national safeguards are in place to protect workers and consumers and ensure the technologies don’t harm the environment.
“They need some PR help because people think that if a data center goes in there, electricity prices are going to go up,” Trump said.
Voters need more than voluntary assurances from tech companies, Sanders said Wednesday.
“AI and robotics are creating the most sweeping technological revolution in the history of humanity. The scale, scope and speed of that change is unprecedented. Congress is way behind where it should be in understanding the nature of this revolution and its impacts,” he said in a statement ahead of the bill’s formal introduction.
“Bottom line: We cannot sit back and allow a handful of billionaire Big Tech oligarchs to make decisions that will reshape our economy, our democracy and the future of humanity,” Sanders said. “We need serious public debate and democratic oversight over this enormously consequential issue. The time for action is now. We need a federal moratorium on AI data centers.”
Most lawmakers of both parties have rejected the idea of a moratorium.
