Welcome to Tech Friday, a new joint project of The Hill and Pluribus News covering tech policy across government.
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Being first is hard. See Connecticut, where Gov. Ned Lamont (D) effectively killed a landmark artificial intelligence (AI) bill this week with a veto threat, and Colorado, where Gov. Jared Polis (D) has been notably quite about a similar bill that won passage in the final days of session.
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Connecticut Sen. James Maroney (D) and Colorado Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez (D) are the driving forces behind AI regulations — and leaders of the interstate working group of lawmakers who met throughout the last year on emerging AI technology. For Maroney, Lamont’s veto threat was a bitter pill. Rodriguez doesn’t yet know how Polis will act.
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Even before Polis makes his decision, the Maroney-Rodriguez template is showing up in other states. Expect to see more states take up AI legislation in the future, both to promote the industry and to set up guardrails over government and private use of AI systems. Next year will be the year of AI reform.
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Image © Jaap Arriens, NurPhoto via Getty Images
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TikTok sues to block divestment
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TikTok has filed suit in federal court to block a forced divestiture from parent company ByteDance. The law, approved by Congress last month, gives ByteDance 270 days to sell TikTok. TikTok and ByteDance say the law violates users’ First Amendment rights. Read more at The Hill.
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Biden administration funds semiconductor chips
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The Biden administration is granting $285 million for research and development of digital twins in the semiconductor industry. The money will establish and operate an American manufacturing institute focused on cloud-based chip technology. Read more at The Hill.
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Health giant hit in cyber attack
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Ascension Health, the nation’s largest Catholic hospital chain, said it had been hit by a cyberattack, interrupting some systems. It’s not clear how much damage the chain’s IT system has suffered. Read more at The Hill.
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Google parent Alphabet is in talks to acquire the marketing software provider HubSpot. Alphabet has discussed deal terms; HubSpot has a $30 billion market cap. Read more at Bloomberg.
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Streaming services join to create bundle
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Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery will offer Disney+, Hulu and Max as a streaming bundle, the companies said this week. It’s the first major cross-company partnership between streaming services, a step toward catching up to Netflix’s library of content. Read more at Deadline.
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Instacart expands into restaurants
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The grocery delivery service Instacart will add restaurant takeout to its offerings in partnership with Uber Eats, it said this week. The service means free delivery over $35 for those who subscribe to Instacart Plus. Read more at The Hill.
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Magnificent Seven performance this week
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NVDA +1.1%, META +6.6%, TSLA -5.6%, AMZN +1.5%, GOOG +1.9%, MSFT +2.4%, AAPL -1.1%. NASDAQ-100 Tech Sector Index: +0.6%.
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Assemblyman Clyde Vanel (D) will introduce legislation requiring generative aritificial intelligence (AI) systems to come with a warning that the information they provide might be false. The bill comes after AI systems made up stories about lawmakers committing sexual harassment. Read more at Pluribus News.
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Lawmakers approved bills that would prevent companies from reducing pay for drivers based on tips they receive. One measure opens the door for ride share drivers to unionize. Read more at Pluribus News.
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Sen. Steve Glazer (D) has introduced a bill to create a data extraction mitigation fee from big tech platforms, a fee that would capture about $500 million to fund local journalism. The fund would provide tax credits to news organizations based in California. Read more at Pluribus News.
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May 14: Alibaba and Tencent report first quarter earnings.
May 15: Cisco Systems reports earnings.
Also May 15: The Senate Intelligence Committee will hold a hearing on foreign threats to the 2024 elections. The House Oversight Subcommittee on Cybersecurity will hold a hearing into cyberthreats from China.
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A whopping 97% of American teenage boys play video games, and 62% identify as a gamer, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. Among girls, 73% play video games, and 17% call themselves gamers. Read more at Pew.
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You're all caught up!
See you next week.
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