Original Article By David Lindfield
President Donald Trump’s White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks is sounding the alarm over a wave of Democrat-driven regulations that he says could hardwire “woke AI” into America’s future.
Appearing on the All-In podcast, Sacks highlighted the explosion of state-level legislation targeting artificial intelligence.
By his count, all 50 states have introduced AI bills in 2025, with more than 1,000 proposals already flooding state legislatures and at least 118 laws enacted nationwide.
“The red state proposals for AI in general have a lighter touch than the blue states,” Sacks said.
“But everyone just seems to be motivated by the imperative to do something on AI, even though no one’s really sure what that something should be.”
California Leads The Push
Sacks singled out California as the epicenter of the regulatory frenzy, with far-left Democrat State Senator Scott Wiener spearheading SB 1047 and a slate of 17 additional bills.
While pitched as simple “safety” measures requiring risk reports, Sacks warned these bills represent “the camel’s nose under the tent,” creating red tape that will metastasize into an unmanageable web of compliance demands.
Startups and developers, he argued, face a looming nightmare navigating 50 separate state regimes.
The system could prove more burdensome than even the European Union’s centralized regulations.
“This is like very European-style regulations,” Sacks said.
“Actually, maybe even worse than the EU.”
Colorado’s “Woke AI” Template
Sacks pointed to Colorado’s SB24-205 as a preview of what’s coming.
The law bans “algorithmic discrimination,” which is defined so broadly that even race-neutral criteria like credit scores could trigger state prosecution if outcomes disproportionately affect protected groups.
In practice, Sacks said, a loan officer relying on neutral financial data could still be deemed discriminatory if approvals varied by race or sex.
Developers themselves could be held liable for those outcomes, regardless of the truth of the outputs.
“The only way that I see for model developers to comply with this law is to build in a new DEI layer into the models to basically somehow prevent models from giving outputs that might have a disparate impact on protected groups,” Sacks warned.
“So, we’re back to woke AI again.”
WATCH:
🚨 David Sacks on How Blue State AI Laws Are Encouraging “Woke AI”
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) October 3, 2025
“The only way that I see for model developers to comply with this law is to build in a new DEI layer into the models.” pic.twitter.com/OI5A31xsAq
The warnings come as President Trump has moved aggressively to counter the Left’s influence over emerging technology.
In July, he signed a sweeping executive order directing the federal government to prioritize ideologically neutral AI systems, explicitly rejecting taxpayer-funded contracts with models infused with DEI mandates, critical race theory, or radical gender ideology.
Sacks, a Silicon Valley veteran turned Trump official, was a chief architect of the order.
He worked alongside White House senior policy advisor Sriram Krishnan and consulted activists like Chris Rufo to define “woke AI” and enshrine protections against it.
The directive ensures that AI tools procured by federal agencies are designed for truth-seeking and accuracy, not partisan re-education.
What’s Next
The clash between blue states and Trump’s White House sets up a broader national battle over who controls the future of AI: Washington’s neutral standards or California’s progressive agenda.
With Democrats intent on forcing equity-driven filters into every algorithm, Sacks’ warning underscores what conservatives see as the stakes, not just innovation and entrepreneurship, but whether America’s future AI systems will reflect truth or ideology.
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