AI Startups Drastically Increase Federal Lobbying Spending Amid Election Year
Major AI startups like OpenAI and Anthropic are pouring record amounts of money into federal lobbying as regulation debates heat up. The overall number of groups lobbying on AI issues also jumps significantly in the first half of 2024.
AI startups dramatically increase their federal lobbying efforts as the generative AI boom continues during a pivotal election year. Data from OpenSecrets reveals that the total number of groups lobbying the government on AI issues grows from 459 in 2023 to 556 in the first half of 2024, reflecting a major industry push to shape upcoming regulations.
OpenAI leads this charge by spending $800,000 on lobbying in the first six months of 2024, a massive jump from the $260,000 it spends in all of 2023. The ChatGPT maker expands its outside lobbyist roster from three to around fifteen consultants, hires former politicians like ex-Senator Norm Coleman, and grows its internal global affairs division to 35 employees with plans to reach 50 by year-end.
Other AI companies follow a similar pattern of rapid political expansion. Anthropic is on track to spend half a million dollars on lobbying in the coming months, already investing $250,000 in 2024 compared to $280,000 in all of 2023, while smaller enterprise AI firm Cohere increases its lobbying spend from $70,000 last year to $120,000 in the first half of 2024.