The Biggest Tech and Environmental Issues to Watch in 2025

Many states have created task forces or passed narrow, targeted legislation, such as tackling political or non-consensual sexual deepfakes. But momentum is building for larger, more comprehensive state policies.

California attempted an AI safety-focused bill that its governor vetoed, while Colorado passed an AI policy focused on discrimination. Most state AI regulation this year is likely to adopt the latter’s anti-discrimination focus, predicts Adam Thierer, resident senior fellow with the technology and innovation team at the R Street Institute, a center-right think tank…

This could easily lead to a patchwork of policies, although one group may help bring about a greater level of consensus among state legislators. Members of the Multistate AI Policymaker Working Group share ideas, learn together about the technology and may settle on common definitions and frameworks, while tailoring any final laws to suit their individual states. The working group membership includes lawmakers from Colorado and several other states considering similar policies, including Texas and Connecticut. “You don’t have to have every state pass these laws for them to have enormous, sweeping effect,” Thierer says. “As soon as you get a half-dozen or more states passing laws like this, it becomes a quasi-national standard.”