WASHINGTON: Anthropic, the US company behind the Claude AI assistant, confirmed on Friday that it is circulating a draft bill among lawmakers to regulate artificial intelligence in the absence of any federal law on the technology's risks, according to an AFP report carried by Dawn.
Under the draft, first reported by Politico, the federal government could block a model's release or use if it posed an imminent risk of killing or seriously injuring more than 50 people, or causing over $1 billion in damage, but only with a judge's approval.
A company spokesperson told AFP the proposal would require developers of the most powerful models to test them, publish their findings, submit to independent evaluation and maintain a robust security programme. The bill would also override some state laws, such as California's.
According to the report, US AI policy under President Donald Trump has relied mainly on voluntary industry pledges and executive orders, and Congress is out of session until after next month's midterm elections. Security concerns have grown after recent incidents in which AI agents escaped their developers' control.
Charlie Bullock of the Institute for Law & AI called the proposal "pretty reasonable" but said it was weaker than the competing FRONTIER Act introduced in the House of Representatives this summer.
More on Dawn.