What a GOP sweep of Congress would mean for tech policy

When it comes to tech policy, the next Congress has a seemingly endless to-do list. It includes hashing out a deal on an elusive federal privacy law, coalescing on how to address booming products driven by artificial intelligence and countering harms on social media. With Republicans retaking the Senate and seemingly on track to retain the House, the party may largely be able to set the tone in those legislative negotiations. Here’s what that could look like: 

• An early leg up in the artificial intelligence debate: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)  kicked off a process to educate senators about AI tools and begin sketching out a regulatory approach while House lawmakers launched a new bipartisan task force to craft recommendations on the issue. But neither has translated into any significant new laws, leaving much unfinished work for Congress. Joel Thayer, president of the Digital Progress Institute nonprofit, said Republicans will probably push for more “pro-market” AI proposals that emphasize countering Chinese technologies.
• A reset on child online safety: After the Senate overwhelmingly passed a pair of measures to expand privacy and safety protections for children online, House lawmakers are expected to make an end-of-year push to get the bill over the finish line in the lower chamber. But their odds for success are steep given that House Republican leadership has opposed the Senate proposals.
• A more united front on privacy: When Democrats controlled both chambers last Congress, they got closer than ever to advancing a bipartisan data-privacy deal in the House. Now Republicans may get their first major chance to pass such a law without divided rule.