Defining the Future of AI, Together.

I have spent the past few years serving in federal public service at the Federal Communications Commission, working to close the digital divide across the United States. During that time, I learned a fundamental truth: technology is never just neutral plumbing.

Where fiber optic cables are laid, where cellular towers are built, and who gets access to high-speed connections directly determines who gets to participate in the modern economy. When we leave those decisions entirely to market forces or zip-code lotteries, we create a multi-tiered society where opportunity, influence, and power is concentrated for a few, while millions of households are left navigating a growing "digital protection gap" without a life raft.

Today, we are standing on the edge of a far larger, far faster technological shift. Artificial intelligence is moving at a speed that makes the early days of the commercial internet look like a slow roll out. But as I talk to leaders from across civil society, and witness state and local leaders battling over multi-billion-dollar data center zoning to parents worried about how AI algorithms screen job applications or evaluate their kids in school—I hear the exact same anxiety I used to hear about the digital access gap:

"Who is looking out for us? And do we have any say in how this future is being built?"

That quiet question is why today we launched the American Innovation Policy Forum (A-I Policy Forum).

For the past few years, the debate over artificial intelligence has played out in closed-door Silicon Valley boardrooms and Capitol Hill hearing rooms. Tech executives argued about compute thresholds, while Washington struggled to keep pace with basic definitions.

That period of quiet, centralized tech policy is over.

AI has spilled over into our local communities, our statehouses, and our daily lives.

• Look at New York, where Governor Hochul just announced a moratorium on new data centers to protect local power grids and ratepayer costs.

• Look at Illinois, where lawmakers pushed through the landmark Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures Act to protect workers and consumers from unvetted algorithmic harm.

• Look at town halls from Georgia to Utah, where grassroots community organizing over land use, water consumption, and energy demands are deciding the fate of America's digital infrastructure.

These aren't isolated incidents. They are early tremors of a profound shift: AI is no longer just a technology issue. It is increasingly shaping how decisions are made, how opportunities are distributed, and how communities experience change. In the process, it has quickly become a question of public trust and whether technological progress reflects the values of the people it serves.

When a multi-billion-dollar data center opens in a rural township, local families shouldn't just bear the burden of rising electricity bills while corporate shareholders capture all the upside. When an AI tool automates hiring, tenant screening, or credit approvals, everyday workers deserve transparency and consumer protection.

As long as people feel that technology is something being done to them rather than built with and for them, public trust will break. And without trust, even the most groundbreaking technology will fail to achieve its potential.

Throughout our history, American exceptionalism has never been driven by raw invention alone. It has always been defined by a double-helix: a story of world-altering innovation paired with a story of effective governance that gives that innovation purpose.

When the electric grid transformed our cities, we established public utility commissions to ensure rural communities weren't left in the dark. When aviation took to the skies, we built the FAA to ensure air travel was safe enough for every family to trust. We didn't stifle those industries—we gave them the institutional guardrails they needed to scale safely and earn universal adoption.

We must bring that same wisdom to artificial intelligence. America will not lead the world simply by producing more advanced microchips or constructing larger server farms. The world will not trust American technology if Americans do not trust it themselves.

To lead, we must co-design an effective national policy framework that balances rapid, bold innovation with reliable consumer protections, civil liberties, and new pathways for shared economic prosperity.

Building this framework requires a new kind of organization. The A-I Policy Forum was created as a public-interest catalyst dedicated to ensuring that the voices of the American people help shape the future of AI governance. Guided by our Digital Frontiers Council, comprised of former senior White House advisers, regulatory agency leaders, civil rights advocates, labor experts, and local policy pioneers, we are working to develop an American standard for AI governance that balances innovation and public trust, reflects the values of a free and open society, and is grounded in the experiences of workers, families, and local communities.

Over the coming weeks and months, we will:

• Announce our inaugural cohort of bipartisan policy fellows to bring fresh, grounded perspectives to the debate.

• Release community-informed policy recommendations that address the economic and social impacts of AI.

• Launch Capitol Hill briefings this fall to help lawmakers craft smart, federal solutions that balance bold innovation with public trust.

The window to shape the trajectory of artificial intelligence is open right now. But no single organization, agency, or company can do this alone.

If we have learned anything from previous technological transformations, it is that governance cannot be an afterthought. Once systems are baked into our economy, retrofitting fairness and public trust becomes exponentially harder.

We need policymakers willing to look beyond short-term political cycles to build lasting democratic guardrails. We need industry pioneers who understand that consumer trust is their ultimate competitive advantage. We need civil society advocates, labor leaders, and local officials who know firsthand what their communities need to thrive.

And most importantly, we need everyday Americans to have a meaningful say in the decisions that will shape our communities, our economy, and our daily lives. We don't have to choose between rapid innovation and strong consumer protections. We can, and must, have both.

As I wrote recently in The Hill, only the American people can save AI. Technology should serve humanity, not the other way around. By bringing the experiences, concerns, and ingenuity of everyday Americans directly into the rooms where policy decisions are made, we can build a technology-enabled future designed with and for the American people, and establish a trusted model capable of leading the world by example.