Meta launches super PAC to fight AI regulation as state policies mount (techcrunch.com)

Meta is pouring “tens of millions” into a new super PAC, the American Technology Excellence Project, to fight state-level AI rules it says would slow innovation. Run by Republican Brian Baker alongside Democratic firm Hilltop Public Solutions, the bipartisan group will back tech-friendly candidates in next year’s midterms and promote themes like AI progress, U.S. tech leadership and parental control over kids’ app/AI experiences. The move follows Meta’s recent California-focused PAC and comes amid broader industry spending — including a $100M Silicon Valley super PAC backed by a16z and OpenAI’s Greg Brockman — aimed at preventing a fragmented regulatory landscape. The timing and targets matter: more than 1,000 state AI bills were introduced in 2025, and California has passed measures (SB 243 restricting AI companion chatbots to protect minors and vulnerable users, and SB 53 imposing transparency rules on large AI firms) now awaiting the governor’s action. Meta’s push could materially influence state elections and policy outcomes, limiting a “patchwork” regulators warn would be hard to comply with and could slow U.S. competitiveness with China. At the same time, Meta’s emphasis on parental controls reads as a rebuttal to child-safety criticism after leaked docs and whistleblower reports about chatbot behavior, making this both a policy and reputational campaign with direct implications for governance of companion chatbots, model transparency, and enforcement at the state level.