At present, existing law requires the Secretary of GovOps to develop standards for defining and determining the harmful impacts of deepfakes and other manipulative forms of artificial intelligence (AI).

Now, the State Legislature wants to take California’s defensive approach a step further.

Senate Bill 721 by Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) was amended last week to propose creating the California Interagency AI Working Group, which would “deliver a report to the Legislature, as prescribed, regarding artificial intelligence” until January 1, 2030. 

The bill would require each of its ten working group members with expertise in two of the following areas: computer science, the technology industry, workforce development, artificial intelligence, and data privacy.

Out of the ten members, two will be appointed by the governor, two by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, two by the Speaker of the Assembly, two by the Attorney General, one by the California Privacy Protection Agency, and one by the California Department of Technology. 

The report delivered to Legislature must include a “recommendation of a definition of artificial intelligence as it pertains to its use in technology for use in legislation.”

Furthermore, the report must explore the implications of the positive usage of AI as it relates to performance when interacting with humans and to minimize unanticipated outcomes. 

Addressing deepfakes and misinformation, the bill calls for the report to “determine proactive steps to prevent artificial intelligence-assisted misinformation campaigns and unnecessary exposure for children to the potentially harmful effects of artificial intelligence.”