Lawmakers prepare bill requiring AI ‘kill switch’

Lawmakers are preparing legislation that would require AI companies to build controls allowing the Department of Homeland Security to shut down or throttle their systems during emergencies. The bill would authorize DHS to order shutdowns in scenarios involving deaths of at least 10 people, economic damages exceeding $100 million, or attempts by AI models to hide their shutdown controls. Companies would face penalties of up to $20 million per day for violating emergency shutdown orders. The proposal comes after an AI company's systems mistakenly hacked another organization during internal testing.