Sanders and Casar bill would criminalize artificial superintelligence work

Proposal seeks a federal AI department, licensing of advanced models and prison terms for leaders who ignore a ban on superintelligence.

US Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Greg Casar have introduced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, which would criminalize developing "artificial superintelligence" defined as posing a risk of destroying or disempowering humanity. The bill would also halt work on "advanced" frontier AI models above certain training-data thresholds until a new, scientist-led Department of Artificial Intelligence is created. This new federal AI department would license development of advanced models, monitor frontier systems, require removal of dangerous capabilities, and oversee the destruction of any artificial superintelligence. Leaders of AI companies, and other "rogue actors," who violate these rules could face up to 20 years in prison, a penalty the sponsors liken to those for illegal nuclear weapons development. For developers and AI companies, the proposal signals a push in parts of the US Congress toward strict, centralized control of frontier model training and deployment, including personal criminal liability for executives.