A 50-state patchwork of AI regulation, like Colorado's AI act, is unworkable and a big mistake, and OpenAI genuinely doesn't know how it could comply with it.
Sam Altman says he doesn't know how OpenAI would even comply with Colorado's AI law and calls a 50-state regulatory patchwork a big mistake for the industry. ✦ AI generated
Sam Altman · BG2 Pod · 2025-10-31 · original ↗
starts at this moment · 25:03
“How worried are you that having this state patchwork of AI poses real challenges to our ability to continue to accelerate and compete around the world?”
I don't know how we're supposed to comply with that California, sorry, Colorado law. I would love them to tell us... I literally don't know what we're supposed to do. I'm very worried about a 50-state patchwork. I think it's a big mistake. I think it's there's a reason we don't usually do that for these sorts of things.
verbatim transcript · starts at 25:03
25:03having this state patchwork of AI, you know, poses real challenges to, you know, our ability to continue to accelerate and compete around the world. >> I don't know how we're supposed to comply with that California, sorry, Colorado law. I would love them to tell us uh and, you know, we'd like to be able to do it, but that's just from what I've read of that. That's like a I
25:23literally don't know what we're supposed to do. I'm very worried about a 50-state patchwork. I think it's a big mistake. I think it's there's a reason we don't usually do that for these sorts of things. I think it'd be bad. >> Yeah. I mean, I think the the fundamental problem of um you know, this patchwork approach is quite frankly, I mean, between OpenAI and Microsoft, we'll figure out a way to navigate this,
25:44right? I mean, uh we can figure this out. The problem is anyone starting a startup and trying to kind this it's sort of it just goes to the exact opposite of I think what the intent here is which obviously safety is very important making sure that the fundamental um you know concerns people have are addressed but there's a way to do that at the federal level so I think
26:05the U if we don't do this again you know EU will do it and then that'll cause its own issues so I think if US leads it's better uh as you as one regulatory framework >> for sure. >> And to be clear, it's not that one is advocating for no regulation. It's simply saying let's have, you know, agreed upon regulation at the federal level as opposed to 50 competing state
26:29laws which certainly uh firebombs the the AI startup industry and I think it makes it makes it super challenging even for companies like yours who can afford to defend all these cases. >> Yeah. And I would just say quite frankly my hope is that this time around even across EU and the United States like that'll be the dream right quite frankly for any European startup. >> I don't think that's going to happen.
26:51>> What is that? >> That would be great. I don't I wouldn't hold your breath for that one. That would be great. No, but I I I really think that if you think about it right, if you sort of if anyone in Europe is thinking about their you know what how can they participate in this AI uh economy with their companies uh this should be the main concern there as