Members of the Texas Legislature have introduced a bill designed to regulate AI, a stark contrast from Texas’ typical business-friendly attitude. HB 1709 or the Texas Responsible AI Governance Act would aggressively regulate AI in the Lone Star State.
The legislation is aimed at protecting Texans from the explosive growth of AI technology in the past couple of years. The bill would require businesses to develop and implement risk management plans for “high-risk” AI. It also seeks to establish a standard for negligence in the AI field, so they can hold developers accountable if their AI systems cause any harm.
Most surprisingly, the bill seeks to establish an independent watch-dog agency called the Texas Artificial Intelligence Council, which would be able to issue official advisory opinions and develop regulations.
Bills like this have been considered in other states like California. Their legislature recently approved a bill regulating AI, but it was quickly vetoed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who believed the regulations went too far.
It remains to be seen if this legislation will pass, and if so, if Governor Abbott will sign it into law. But one thing is for sure, this is the most consequential piece of AI legislation proposed to-date, and it could fundamentally change the industry in Texas.