News of the day
1. Meta is investing $65 million in US state elections to back politicians favorable to AI development, aiming to shape the regulatory landscape. → Read more
2. Reliance announces $110B AI infrastructure plan in India, focusing on data centers and edge computing to boost self-reliance and cut costs. → Read more
3. Meta reportedly hires Apple's AI chief, John Giannandrea. This strategic move intensifies competition and could reshape AI development. → Read more
4. World Labs raises $1B to scale spatial AI, focusing on 3D world models. Their product Marble enables 3D world creation from images, video, or text. → Read more
Our take
Hi Dotikers!
When you can't change the rules, you change the referees
Meta just put $65 million on the table. Not for a new AI model or a strategic acquisition, but to fund four super PACs designed to elect "tech-friendly" politicians in the state legislatures of Texas, Illinois, and California. When you can't change the rules, you change the referees.
The strategy is crystal clear. Rather than fighting the 1,200-plus AI bills introduced across all 50 US states in 2025, Meta is going straight after the people who write them. A state house seat costs between $300,000 and $1 million: with $65 million, you can reshape an entire country's AI political landscape. Brian Rice, Meta's VP of Public Policy, cites "a growing patchwork of inconsistent regulations that threaten homegrown innovation."
Meta didn't invent this playbook. It comes from crypto: the Fairshake super PAC spent $139 million in the 2024 elections and won 85% of its races. The tech ecosystem took careful notes. Leading the Future, backed by Andreessen Horowitz and OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman, raised $125 million. All told, the sector is pouring over $300 million into election spending for 2026.
From Europe, the scene is striking. While we move toward full enforcement of the AI Act in August 2026, the United States is privatizing the very fabric of its regulation. Only 8 to 18% of Americans trust companies to prioritize AI safety. Yet these same companies now get to pick who sits in the legislature to decide the question.
We are not naive: lobbying has always existed. But when a single company can outspend the combined campaign budgets of hundreds of candidates, we are no longer talking about influence. We are talking about political architecture.
M.
Meme of the day
