This week, EPIC Counsel @kara-williams.bsky.social spoke on a panel at the 2026 National Conference of State Legislatures Legislative Summit, joining state lawmakers and policymakers to discuss how key federal actions, emerging regulations, and funding programs affect state technology planning.

So excited to see this bill be introduced in Congress by Reps. Valerie Foushee and Greg Casar! And very grateful to have had a hand in writing the model bill on which it was based🎉

EPIC@epic.org · 4w ago

Last night, federal lawmakers introduced the People-First Chatbot Act, a framework based on EPIC's model bill, which was crafted to make chatbots safer for everyone and address the harms caused by AI chatbots that were rushed into the public’s hands with little oversight or transparency.

An article in the NYT today revealed Meta’s plan to take advantage of current political turmoil to sneak facial recognition into their smart glasses without enforcement bodies or privacy advocates noticing. But EPIC has noticed—and is ensuring that enforcers do, too. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/13/t...

Meta Plans to Add Facial Recognition Technology to Its Smart Glasses

nytimes.com

this is exactly what @kara-williams.bsky.social and i are trying to get at in this blog post from last week -- everything is AI = bad for people and policy, good for industry and advertising some proposals and pleas: consumerfed.org/specific-ter...

Specific Terms for Specific Risks: The Need for Accurate Definitions of AI Systems  in Policymaking · Consumer Federation of America

By: Kara Williams (EPIC) and Ben Winters (CFA) Cross-posted on both websites       These headlines likely conjure up a picture of some super-intelligent, all-powerful robot capable of solving society’...

consumerfed.org

Grellock@grellock.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Big Part is that AI generally is marketed as a brand. Meaning that my app I use to correct spelling errors, is essentially seen as the very same thing like Sora 2, which was deliberately created to make soulless AI slop, by copying the work of real artists.

"If everything is 'AI,' it stops lawmakers and their constituents from meaningfully engaging with what a given piece of regulation would actually do. This presents a problem..." More from @kara-williams.bsky.social and me on how ~we~ need to be talking about AI consumerfed.org/specific-ter...

Specific Terms for Specific Risks: The Need for Accurate Definitions of AI Systems  in Policymaking · Consumer Federation of America

By: Kara Williams (EPIC) and Ben Winters (CFA) Cross-posted on both websites       These headlines likely conjure up a picture of some super-intelligent, all-powerful robot capable of solving society’...

consumerfed.org

Back at it! 💪

had a great time today talking state privacy and AI policy — and about how a federal ban on this work is a horribly irresponsible idea — with state advocacy friends

Ben Winters@benwinters.bsky.social · last yr.

panel on state tech policy with @adambenderwrites.com @mattscherer.bsky.social @htsuka.bsky.social @kara-williams.bsky.social and Cody Venzke at @consumerfed.bsky.social consumer assembly event starting now!!

“The best way to start to regulate #AI is to pass a good #Privacy law with #data minimization.” - @kara-williams.bsky.social

Regulation is not the enemy of #innovation, but the #tech industry does not want any rules placed on it, regardless of how clear or commonsense the rules are. #AI @benwinters.bsky.social @kara-williams.bsky.social @techpolicypress.bsky.social

Debunking Myths About AI Laws and the Proposed Moratorium on State AI Regulation | TechPolicy.Press

Kara Williams and Ben Winters address common arguments that industry-aligned groups use against AI regulation.

techpolicy.press

In 2022, @propublica.org found landlords were using RealPage software to raise rents — potentially in violation of laws against collusion. Cities then moved to ban such pricing algorithms. But now, @wsj.com reports that House Republicans are seeking to “muzzle” those local efforts. THREAD

had some fun with @benwinters.bsky.social debunking common myths that the tech industry repeats ad nauseam to push back against any attempt to regulate AI

Tech Policy Press@techpolicypress.bsky.social · last yr.

Drawing from recent debates over the efficacy of a moratorium on state AI legislation in the US, EPIC’s Kara Williams and the Consumer Federation of America’s Ben Winters address common arguments deployed against AI regulation. www.techpolicy.press/debunking-my...

The tech industry only ever has two positions on any proposed tech regulation: (1) Don’t regulate us. It’s too early. Our tech is still developing. (2) Don’t regulate us. It’s too late. Our tech is everywhere.

The leaders of the House Energy & Commerce Committee wrote to #23andme saying that since there is no federal comprehensive data privacy law, they have "great concern" about the safety of Americans' most sensitive personal info. Not at all frustrating. energycommerce.house.gov/posts/chairm...

Chairmen Guthrie, Bilirakis, and Palmer Launch Investigation into 23andMe and its Handling of Americans’ Sensitive Medical and Genetic Information

The Committee on Energy and Commerce is the oldest standing legislative committee in the U.S. House of Representatives and is vested with the broadest jurisdiction of any congressional authorizing com...

energycommerce.house.gov

Just so we’re all clear, the Supreme Court *expressly ruled* that the president cannot fire FTC commissioners without cause in 1935’s Humphrey’s Executor. Trump’s action here is brazenly illegal under any interpretation of the law as it stands. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...

Exclusive: Trump fires both Democratic commissioners at FTC, sources say

President Donald Trump fired the two Democratic commissioners at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, two sources familiar with the situation said, in another major test of the independence of regulatory agencies.

reuters.com