Although they have not made technology a major topic on the campaign trail, the presidential campaigns have laid out policy approaches on issues such as AI, social media, and cryptocurrency. (Douglas Rissing/Getty Images)
Though technology policy isn’t one of the main drivers getting voters out to the polls in the upcoming presidential election, the speed in which technology develops will undoubtedly impact the way everyday Americans communicate, work and interact with the world in the next four years.
Concern about artificial intelligence’s role in the election plague the majority of both Republicans and Democrats, a Pew Research Center survey found last month. Those polled are concerned that AI is being used to influence the election, and a poll earlier in the year shows that people are wary of the amount of power social media and Big Tech companies have over their lives.
Several bills regulating new technologies have been introduced in Congress, but no federal laws regulating artificial intelligence or data privacy have yet been passed. In October 2023, President Joe Biden signed an executive order calling for federal agencies to examine the impacts of AI and report how they might address problems.
Though tech issues aren’t central to their platforms, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have outlined some of how they see technology playing a role in Americans’ lives.
Harris’ policies tend to focus on inclusivity, data protection, net neutrality and expanding broadband access. One of the largest wins for the tech and science communities during the Biden-Harris administration is the CHIPS and Science Act, which in 2022 provided funding for research and development for environmental projects, clean energy and American manufacturing of semiconductors, which are the basis of most electronics.
Trump’s policies would likely roll back some protections for consumers put in place by the Biden administration and programs like the electric vehicle challenge, which aims to have all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030.
Trump’s platform also places a lot of focus on what he considers “illegal censorship” by Big Tech companies. That included Twitter before Elon Musk bought it and renamed it X. The Tesla CEO has become one of Trump’s biggest cheerleaders.
While Harris’ policies focus on finding a balance of innovation and overreach by Big Tech companies, Trump’s policies focus on a more free market approach.
On the topics of AI and cryptocurrency, though, Harris and Trump see somewhat similar approaches. At a fundraiser at Cipriani Wall Street earlier this week, Harris talked about the importance of these evolving technologies in the current economy, while recognizing that they need oversight.
“We will partner together to invest in America’s competitiveness, to invest in America’s future,” Harris said. “We will encourage innovative technologies like AI and digital assets while protecting our consumers and investors.”
It’s a change from the current administration, which is more focused on protections for consumers amid the evolving market, rather than industry growth. Trump has similarly taken a lighter stance on AI and crypto, saying that the industry requires some time to work itself out, and doesn’t support tough oversight at this moment.
On antitrust issues, Harris’ administration would likely continue pursuing enforcement against large platforms and Big Tech companies that came from Biden’s administration. He signed an executive order in 2021 against companies that use monopoly techniques and gather personal data, and his Justice Department filed lawsuits against Facebook’s parent Meta and Amazon.
Trump’s administration also carried out some antitrust suits against Google and Meta toward the end of his time in office. He’s long been vocal about his distrust and dislike for major social media platforms, claiming bias against him.
Most Americans are in favor of more tech regulation than there is now. But they’re likely not too concerned with the nitty gritty details that have kept bills sitting in Congress, said Ryan Waite, VP of Public Affairs at digital advocacy firm Think Big.
Waite has spent the last two decades working in and around political campaigns, and he said emerging technologies and AI are as influential to the future internet landscape as much as the introduction of the internet itself was to everyday life 30 years ago.
He likened pending or potential AI legislation to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which promoted competition and reduced regulation in order to bring down costs for consumers as new technologies in broadcast and internet exploded.
“I think if you talked to the average American then, they wouldn’t have known what the internet was, perhaps they experienced it at some level, but probably didn’t care much about how it was legislated,” Waite said.
But the legislation revamped the communications and telecommunications frameworks for the industry and changed how we work and receive information, Waite said. In that same concept, AI and other emerging technologies are being adopted at such high rates that “We’re at an earthquake moment,” Waite said.
Both parties aim to strengthen the technology industry and America’s place in the world market, but they approach it differently, Waite said.
Debates over legislation usually come down to trying to find appropriate, timely legislation that regulates these new technologies without stifling innovation and growth.
Harris’ campaign approach is viewed as “inclusive” on these issues, Waite said, with goals to provide broadband access everywhere, and a focus on getting access to these tools for small business and underserved communities.
“They’re very interested in this equality framework, of being able to say everyone should have access to these tools,” Waite said.
Trump tends to lean more toward allowing businesses to innovate and do what they do well with the belief that time will iron out problems in these technologies. These policies usually favor economic impact over safeguarding technologies.
Most Americans probably favor some middle ground legislation that allows for data and bias protections from quickly growing technologies while allowing American companies to become global leaders, he said
In the end, for most Americans, tech issues aren’t as partisan as the two-party system sets them up to be, Waite said.
“Voters might not always know the legislative details,” Waite said. “But they do care about having reliable broadband access, keeping their kids safe online and ensuring that innovation is advancing to keep pace with global competition.”