Exclusive: Democrat rolls out AI liability proposal

Massachusetts Rep. Lori Trahan’s “CLAIM Act” would make it easier for third parties to sue AI developers. A leading House Democrat is rolling out draft legislation to clarify liability for AI developers when their agents cause harm in direct response to the rogue AI hack of Hugging Face earlier this year. According to an announcement shared first with Semafor, Massachusetts Rep. Lori Trahan’s “CLAIM Act” would make it easier for third parties to sue AI developers while clarifying questions around intent related to AI agents’ conduct. “When someone breaks the law and hurts you, you can take them to court. That shouldn’t change just because the wrongdoer is an AI agent,” Trahan said. Trahan, who previously joined Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., in a bipartisan push to draft AI regulations, is framing the liability push as a way to incentivize AI developers to embrace safety. The legislation would also set a federal floor, rather than preempt state laws.