Press Release
Governor Newsom Signs SB 53, Establishing California as Global Leader in AI Safety and Innovation
09. 29. 2025
Landmark legislation creates transparency requirements for advanced AI systems and establishes a public option for cloud computing
SACRAMENTO – Today, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law SB 53 (Wiener), legislation that creates CalCompute, a public computing infrastructure designed to broaden access to artificial intelligence development resources, and establishes transparency standards and protections for AI systems. The legislation follows recommendations from Governor Newsom’s working group of leading AI experts established after his veto of Sen. Wiener’s SB 1047 last year. SB 53 received bipartisan support in the California Legislature and backing from AI companies, researchers, celebrities, and civil society groups. The bill is co-sponsored by Economic Security California affiliate Economic Security California Action.
“Until today, Big Tech execs have had full control of AI, they’ve had no guardrails to prevent widespread harm, they’ve not had to consider AI’s benefits beyond their own profits or growth. I am thrilled that with the signing of SB 53, we can offer a new path forward. Now, in this urgent moment, we have the ability to hold AI developers accountable to the public interest and the public good. What’s more, we have an investment in the computing power that will allow for AI innovations that serve the public for generations to come. California made it official: the future of AI development is a hopeful one. We applaud Governor Newsom and Senator Wiener for their leadership on this critical issue,” said Teri Olle, Director of Economic Security Project California.
SB 53 requires the largest AI companies to publicly disclose their safety protocols, report critical safety incidents to the state, and protects whistleblowers who reveal evidence of critical risks. Additionally, the law creates CalCompute, a public cloud computing cluster that provides AI infrastructure for startups, researchers, and entrepreneurs that will democratize access and enable innovators to use AI to solve our most pressing public problems. Currently, computing power needed for advanced AI development is dominated by just three companies: Amazon, Google, and Microsoft. CalCompute will provide a public option, dilute this concentrated market, and create AI solutions that are desperately needed.
The federal government has taken steps to give the tech leaders more authority and less oversight, including a proposed 10-year AI regulation moratorium which would offer a permission structure for the industry to act with impunity. By contrast, California’s leadership on AI positions the state as a global model for balancing innovation with public safety. California’s action today means that AI development must serve broad public benefit rather than narrow corporate interests. California’s approach more closely matches the broad-based support for reining in AI, illustrated by the 80% of adults surveyed by Gallup this spring who said they favor safety and security over speed in AI development.
California has a history of making strategic public investments in emerging technologies. CalCompute follows this tradition by creating space for innovations that benefit society broadly. The power of AI stands to change entire sectors in technology, healthcare, energy, and climate. SB 53 ensures that the computing power needed to fuel these technological advances benefits the public, not just the few tech companies that currently control the lion’s share of the market.