The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee voted to reauthorize and expand the National Quantum Initiative Act. Senators approved a handful of amendments aimed at improving coordination on quantum across federal agencies, strengthening quantum-era cybersecurity, and expanding quantum research. The bill now goes to the full Senate for a vote—and it will still need to be taken up by the House before becoming law.
Thank you for reading! Below, please check out our roundup of tech policy news and a new video featuring VFI leaders.
This Week in Washington
- Reuters: A bipartisan group of lawmakers from the Senate and House released a new version of the MATCH Act, a bill introduced at the beginning of the month that would restrict the sale of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China. The new version of the legislation will be voted on in the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
- Semafor: National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross said this week that he expects executive orders in the coming months on infrastructure security, AI in cybersecurity, and additional implementation guidance on the national cybersecurity strategy published last month.
- Broadband Breakfast: Congressman Paul Tonko (D-NY) introduced the Power for the People Act, a bill designed to ensure residential customers do not see energy cost spikes driven by data center demand. The Senate version of the bill was introduced by Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-DE) in January.
- CyberScoop: The Department of Commerce has officially launched its “American AI Exports Program.” The program aims to increase American exports of AI technologies through expedited review, processing, and referrals of full-stack AI for allies and partners.
Article Summary
- Manufacturing Dive: Texas A&M University broke ground on a new $226 million semiconductor facility. The facility is funded primarily by the school itself and will support semiconductor workforce training and innovation.
- StateScoop: The Center for Civic Futures launched a $10M funding round for its Public Benefit Innovation Fund. The grants seek to improve government operations by upgrading and better leveraging technology within state-level benefit disbursement and evaluation systems.
- TIME: AI innovation continues to make strides in cancer diagnosis and treatment. Pharmaceutical companies, including Moderna and Merck, along with AI startups, are testing AI-driven personalized vaccines and testing regimens that are specially designed to identify cancer based on individual biomarkers in routine scans.
- Inside Climate News: Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed into law a bill to increase transparency around electricity rates. The bill follows concerns over data centers and their effect on electricity prices and freezes utility rates at current levels until 2029.
Featured Podcast
- Voices for Innovation Video
Voices for Innovation leaders are at the forefront of the AI policy conversation, contributing expertise and industry perspective as lawmakers chart a course into the AI era. We asked our Advisory Task Force leaders how they are approaching AI. Watch now on LinkedIn and share their voices with your networks!
Note: Voices for Innovation regularly shares a range of opinion articles and press releases from organizations in and publications covering tech policy. These pieces are meant to educate our audience, not to endorse specific platforms or bills.