US Senators Propose Bill to Ban Superintelligent AI, Violators Could Face Up to 20 Years in Prison

US Senators Bernie Sanders and Greg Casar have introduced the "Ban on Artificial Superintelligence Act," which aims to curb and pause frontier advanced AI development and enforce a ban on AI superintelligence. The bill proposes a new cabinet-level federal agency to protect the public from AI risks and enforce the ban.

Violators face severe penalties: entities could receive a "corporate death penalty" — losing their legal status — while individuals could face up to 20 years in prison, comparable to penalties for illegally developing nuclear weapons.

The bill also seeks to ban superintelligence globally through international agreements and allied coordination. Previously, two Anthropic researchers warned that rapidly advancing AI could lead to human extinction in the near future, prompting more US lawmakers to call for new AI regulations.