Pritzker asks feds to regulate AI amid growing concern; Trump not
convinced
[September 15, 2026]
By Sean Reed | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Following the resignation of an artificial
intelligence safety researcher and whistleblower from a leading American
AI company who claimed AI development is putting human lives at risk,
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has called for increased oversight and regulation of
the industry.
Jacob Coxon, an AI researcher, resigned from his job at Anthropic, which
makes the chatbot Claude, last week citing concerns that the technology
is rapidly developing, creating the potential to end civilization in a
decade.
Following Coxon’s whistleblowing and call for a coordinated approach by
the industry, Pritzker released a list of requests of the federal
government.
The governor suggests AI companies and “big tech” should be disallowed
from lobbying against regulations, have congressional hearings on AI
safety and for the federal government to implement a coordinated plan to
safely continue forward.
Pritzker’s call for intervention comes as President Donald Trump said
he’s not as worried about the warnings, but is focused on continuing to
lead China in having the best research.
“We're leading China in AI. We're the most sophisticated country in the
world. And frankly, I want to keep it that way because whoever wins AI
wins.,” Trump said. “I think you have a lot of negative voices that are
bringing it up that shouldn't be bringing it up. And they're bringing up
things that won't happen.”
Pritzker recently signed The Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures
Act, requiring AI companies to conduct and share findings of annual
third-party audits and disclose safety incidents to the state.
“We must protect our people from the dangers of AI while still
harnessing the unique potential of the technology. And we're doing it in
Illinois with a bipartisan, first and most protective in the nation,
law,” Pritzker said at the signing
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The governor and lawmakers were clear that they don’t want to stifle
innovation, and they see clear uses for AI.
“It will have a profound impact on our work, on our health, and on
our democracy. And much much more to be honest with you. The
decisions we make today will decide whether this tool is used for
good or for ill,” Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch said.
While Pritzker said he wants to see an end to lobbying efforts
against safety regulation, the Illinois law had support from and was
crafted alongside major AI companies, including Anthropic and OpenAI.
Ann O'Leary, OpenAI’s vice president of global policy said in a
statement as the law was being considered in Springfield that her
company supported the law.
“We believe the U.S. should ultimately have national standards for
frontier AI safety, but in the absence of federal action, state
efforts like this one in Illinois – alongside legislation already in
place in California and New York – are helping to create a de facto
nationwide approach,” O’Leary wrote.
A release from Pritzker’s office highlighted the measure as the
strictest AI regulatory framework, and said Illinois, California and
others had effectively set the national standards already.
Leaders in the Congress are at odds regarding new regulations. House
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-LA, has urged caution to new laws over
concerns they could restrict American companies and cause them to
fall behind Chinese research.
Meanwhile in the Senate, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, called
on the Trump administration to hold a briefing with the Senate to
explain what measures are already in place.
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