The era of artificial intelligence being purely a technology story is over.
According to a flood of new developments from Washington and the campaign trail, AI has officially entered the political arena as a central wedge issue for the 2026 and 2028 elections.
From warring Super PACs raising tens of millions of dollars to internal fractures within the MAGA movement and a massive new White House initiative, the battle lines are being drawn.
To make sense of the noise, I spoke with SmarterX and Marketing AI Institute founder and CEO Paul Roetzer on Episode 183 of The Artificial Intelligence Show.
Here’s what you need to know about the rapidly politicizing landscape of AI.
The fight over how (and if) to regulate AI is now a multimillion-dollar political contest.
We’ve previously discussed "Leading the Future," a $100 million Super PAC backed by Andreessen Horowitz and OpenAI insiders that targets regulation-friendly lawmakers. Their goal is clear: promote an accelerationist agenda that ensures American dominance in AI.
Now, a counter-effort is emerging.
The New York Times reports that a new network of Super PACs is seeking to raise $50 million to back candidates who prioritize AI safety regulations. This faction, with reported ties to Anthropic insiders and the effective altruism movement, aims to act as a check on the rapid, unfettered expansion of the technology.
And, they're active. We are already seeing these groups target specific races, such as the Democratic primary for New York’s congressional seats, turning local elections into proxy wars for the future of AI policy.
While Democrats grapple with safety versus innovation, a significant rift is opening up on the political right.
On one side, the Trump administration and advisors like David Sacks are advocating for aggressive deregulation. Their argument is geopolitical: The U.S. must win the AI arms race against China to secure economic and military superiority.
On the other side, influential populist voices, led by former strategist Steve Bannon, are urging the base to resist.
Citing threats to working-class jobs and the dangers of "anti-human" technology, Bannon has reportedly called AI "the most dangerous technology in the history of mankind." This faction views the accelerationist agenda as "crony capitalism" that benefits Silicon Valley elites at the expense of ordinary workers.
It’s a fascinating dynamic where the base of a party may be fundamentally at odds with its leadership's tech policy.
Amidst the political maneuvering, the White House has launched a massive new initiative.
Titled "Launching the Genesis Mission," a new executive order establishes a coordinated national effort to accelerate scientific discovery through AI. The text of the order describes the undertaking as comparable in urgency to the World War II-era Manhattan Project.
The mission aims to harness federal datasets to train scientific foundation models capable of automating research workflows in critical areas, including:
So, why is all of this happening now?
According to Roetzer, politicians are finally waking up to the reality that AI isn’t just a niche tech vertical. It affects everything.
“It is becoming very political, for sure,” says Roetzer. “And I think it's because politicians are starting to realize AI touches so many areas: jobs, the economy, geopolitics, the regulation issue is a huge thing.”
Whether it’s the debate over federal preemption of state-level safety laws or the fears of a "jobs apocalypse," parties are currently testing different narratives to see what sticks with voters.
“I think what we're seeing is just these trial balloons,” says Roetzer. “Both sides are sort of floating these talking points and trying to see, okay, are there any votes sitting behind this idea?”
We are witnessing the early stages of AI becoming a defining political issue.
As the 2026 midterms approach, expect these narratives to harden into campaign platforms. Whether the focus is on national security, job protection, or child safety, AI is no longer just a tool for business efficiency.
It’s a platform for political power.
“Once someone finds the wedge,” says Roetzer, “it's like, okay, now let's go and let's build the campaigns around these things.”