NEW YORK \u2014 Whether the hopefuls looking to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler like it or not, their race has become a flashpoint for the national debate over how to regulate artificial intelligence \u2014 and Assemblymember Alex Bores has claimed the label of \u201cAI guy<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Much of Bores\u2019 rise in the competitive campaign has stemmed from his signature policy in the state Legislature, the RAISE Act<\/a>, one of the country\u2019s landmark laws to establish guardrails for AI. It drew millions of dollars in attack ads against him from tech leaders who argue such regulations stymie innovation \u2014 and even more from those in the industry who are friendlier to AI oversight and are now boosting Bores.<\/p>\n

Some of Bores\u2019 opponents have sought to turn the tables on his AI message. In a recent interview<\/a>, Kennedy scion Jack Schlossberg, one of Bores\u2019 top opponents, criticized Bores\u2019 RAISE Act as being \u201cwatered down\u201d compared to how it was initially presented. He also went after the assemblymember\u2019s promise to regulate the technology<\/a> while being backed by those in the industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I hear someone talking about AI regulation who is being bankrolled by the AI industry, that reminds me of people who go in saying they\u2019re gonna tackle fossil fuels and are actually taking money on the side from oil and gas companies,\u201d Schlossberg said. \u201cIf we\u2019re gonna be regulating AI, and we think it is the important issue that it is, we should have disinterested regulators, not those who have been bankrolled by one company and not another.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bores will often tout his record in the Legislature, where he has served since 2023. A common refrain<\/a> is he was recognized by the Center for Effective Lawmaking as the \u201cmost effective new legislator\u201d from the city and that he\u2019s passed more than 30 bills.<\/p>\n

But on what\u2019s become his hallmark issue, Bores hasn\u2019t always been a \u201cyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He has been supportive of dozens of AI-related bills, but on a handful of occasions, he\u2019s been a detractor on bills aimed at addressing guardrails around technology and AI. That legislation includes:<\/p>\n