A $100 million AI super PAC backed by Silicon Valley heavyweights just made its first political target famous. Alex Bores, the New York Democrat behind the state's toughest AI safety bill, says Leading the Future's attack campaign is actually helping him raise the profile of AI regulation. The irony isn't lost on anyone - especially Bores himself.
When a $100 million super PAC declares war on you, it usually means your political career is in trouble. Alex Bores thinks it means he's winning. The New York Assembly member and Democratic congressional candidate finds himself in the unprecedented position of being Silicon Valley's first political enemy - and he's practically sending thank-you notes. "I want to thank [the PAC] for their partnership in raising up the issue of how we regulate an incredibly powerful technology," Bores told WIRED with barely contained glee. "I couldn't imagine a better partner this week."
The target on Bores' back traces directly to the RAISE Act, New York's groundbreaking AI safety bill that he coauthored with state Senator Andrew Gounardes. The legislation empowers the state's attorney general to slap civil penalties up to $30 million on AI developers like OpenAI and Google if they fail to publish mandatory safety reports. It passed the state legislature in June and now sits on Governor Kathy Hochul's desk awaiting her signature before year's end.
That timing couldn't be more critical. The bill represents one of the most aggressive state-level attempts to regulate AI developers, arriving just as the Trump administration prepares an executive order designed to gut state AI laws entirely. According to WIRED's reporting, Trump may create a Justice Department unit specifically to litigate against states over AI regulation.
Enter Leading the Future, the recently formed super PAC that's making Bores its inaugural target. Beyond Andreessen Horowitz's backing, the PAC draws funding from OpenAI cofounder Greg Brockman and Palantir cofounder Joe Lonsdale. Their message to WIRED was crystal clear: Bores has "advanced exactly the type of ideological and politically motivated legislation that would handcuff not only New York's, but the entire country's, ability to lead on AI jobs and innovation."
The PAC promises to "aggressively oppose policymakers and candidates in states across the country" who threaten Americans' ability to benefit from AI, though they won't reveal their next targets. With $100 million in the war chest, Bores quips he hopes "they're not planning to spend all of it on me."
What makes this political theater particularly fascinating is Bores' technical background. The former Palantir engineer holds a master's degree in computer science from Georgia Tech and worked inside the AI industry for four years before quitting in 2019 over the company's ICE contract renewal. "The part that scares Trump's megadonors the most is that I actually understand AI," he claims.
This isn't just political posturing. The RAISE Act specifically targets voluntary safety commitments that AI companies have already made publicly. "The fundamental logic of the RAISE Act was that companies already made a bunch of voluntary commitments to safety," Bores explained. "However, there's also economic pressures that could cause them to change their mind." The penalties ensure there's an economic incentive to maintain safety standards rather than abandon them when convenient.
The political dynamics are shifting rapidly. House Republicans are preparing renewed efforts to ban state AI laws entirely, while Trump's transition team drafts executive orders to challenge existing state legislation. Bores argues this approach backwards: "I've never heard someone say we need to promote more innovation with more lawsuits."
But the real irony lies in how Leading the Future's campaign strategy may be backfiring. By making Bores their poster child for anti-AI regulation, they've elevated a relatively unknown state assemblyman into a national figure on AI policy. His Sunday town hall with constituents featured multiple questions about AI alongside traditional concerns like infrastructure and healthcare - exactly the kind of mainstream attention AI safety advocates have been seeking.
The battle extends beyond one congressional race. Leading the Future represents a broader Silicon Valley pushback against state-level AI regulation, with venture capitalists and tech founders warning that patchwork state laws could hamper American AI competitiveness. Bores counters that federal inaction forces states to act as "laboratories of democracy."
For a super PAC designed to intimidate politicians away from AI regulation, Leading the Future may have chosen the wrong first target. Bores frames their opposition as validation rather than threat, telling voters he'll be "the lone voice" ensuring "technology works for us, and not that we work for technology."
The spectacle of a $100 million super PAC targeting a single state assemblyman over AI regulation reveals just how high the stakes have become in the battle over AI governance. By making Alex Bores their first enemy, Leading the Future may have inadvertently created their first martyr - and handed AI safety advocates exactly the kind of David-versus-Goliath narrative they need to build popular support for regulation. As Trump's team prepares to challenge state AI laws and venture capitalists deploy unprecedented political spending, Bores' defiant response suggests this fight is just getting started.
