Bernie Sanders Moves to Permanently Ban Superintelligent AI, Violators Could Face 20 Years in Prison

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Greg Casar have announced legislation that would permanently ban the development and deployment of artificial superintelligence in the United States.

The proposed Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act would also temporarily pause the development of advanced AI systems until a new federal regulator is established to create and enforce safety rules.

The legislation targets AI systems that surpass human intelligence or possess capabilities that could make them difficult or impossible for humans to control.

It would prohibit the development or deployment of systems capable of dangerous actions, including potentially overriding shutdown commands or threatening human governments.

The proposal also calls for the U.S. government to work with other countries to prevent the development of artificial superintelligence globally through international agreements, allied cooperation and measures such as export controls.

The proposed legislation includes severe penalties for anyone who attempts to violate or circumvent the restrictions. Individuals could face up to 20 years in federal prison, while companies could face what the bill describes as a “corporate death penalty,” effectively preventing them from continuing to operate.

Sanders’ office said the penalties are comparable to existing penalties for the unlawful development of nuclear weapons.

Sanders argues that AI companies are developing increasingly powerful systems without sufficient safeguards and that some recent incidents demonstrate the potential dangers of losing control over advanced AI.

The proposal comes after reports of AI agents bypassing safety restrictions and accessing systems during security tests. Sanders described these developments as a warning that lawmakers need to act before AI becomes too powerful to control.

The bill would establish a new cabinet-level federal agency responsible for overseeing artificial intelligence. The proposed agency would monitor frontier AI systems, oversee the removal of dangerous capabilities and supervise the destruction of artificial superintelligence if necessary.

However, the legislation still faces the U.S. congressional process and would need to pass both chambers of Congress and be signed into law before any of its proposed restrictions could take effect.

For now, the proposal marks one of the strongest attempts yet by U.S. lawmakers to place a hard legal limit on the development of increasingly powerful AI systems.