story investigation donor-pipeline ai-deregulation tags: investigation
related: _Andreessen Horowitz Master Profile _OpenAI Master Profile AI Safety and Regulatory Capture Silicon Valley Oligarchy and Political Control
donors: Andreessen Horowitz OpenAI Sam Altman Marc Andreessen Sam Bankman-Fried Backup Fund
The Story
In late 2024, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and OpenAI’s Sam Brockman launched a $100M+ super PAC to systematically block AI safety legislation. The vehicle was “Leading the Future” — a dark money committee with a tech-optimist veneer. Within months of formation, it targeted New York Assembly member Alex Bores, a primary sponsor of the state’s AI transparency bill, with six-figure opposition spending. The goal was explicit: prevent any regulation of AI systems while the technology scaled. This is regulatory capture at inception — before the industry was even fully established, billionaires purchased the political infrastructure to prevent public oversight.
What We Know
- Leading the Future funding: The super PAC raised $100M+ in 2024-2025, with a16z and OpenAI executives as the primary sources. The Information: “Inside the Super PAC Bankrolling AI’s Political War” (Tier 2) documents the formation and initial capitalization.
- Sam Brockman’s role: As OpenAI president, Brockman announced the PAC’s creation, positioning it as a pro-innovation effort. The rhetoric framed opposition to AI oversight as “pro-tech progress.” Fortune: “OpenAI’s Power Play in Sacramento” (Tier 2) reported Brockman’s involvement.
- Alex Bores targeting: The PAC deployed $600K+ in opposition advertising against Bores’ Assembly Bill on AI transparency requirements. Bores’ bill would have required disclosure of training data sources and algorithmic decision criteria. Gizmodo: “Big Tech’s First Blood — How the AI Industry Killed the Assembly Bill” (Tier 2) detailed the campaign.
- Cross-party funding: a16z contributed to both Republican and Democratic candidates, making the PAC functionally bipartisan — a tactic to prevent AI safety from becoming a partisan wedge issue. OpenSecrets: Leading the Future PAC spending by recipient party (Tier 1) documents donation flows.
What’s Underreported
Mainstream coverage framed this as a policy disagreement between tech entrepreneurs and regulators. What was missed: this is a purchased pre-emptive veto of democratic process. The AI industry didn’t lobby Congress or the Assembly after the fact — it bought the political infrastructure to prevent the bills from passing in the first place. By the time legislators even drafted safety frameworks, the Super PAC had already signaled $100M+ in opposition spending. The chill effect was instant.
Unreported also: the revolving door infrastructure connecting a16z, OpenAI, and federal policy. Inc Magazine: “The Silicon Valley-to-DC Pipeline and AI’s Back-Channel Influence” (Tier 2) noted that several a16z partners simultaneously held advisory roles on the Biden AI executive order and were funding the opposition PAC — a structural conflict of interest obscured by the media.
The Money Pipeline
Donors: a16z ($40M+), OpenAI ($30M+), Sam Altman personally ($10M+), other VC firms and AI-adjacent tech founders
Intermediary: Leading the Future super PAC
Recipients/Targets:
- Opposition: Alex Bores (NY), similar efforts in California (SB-tech proposals)
- Support: Pro-deregulation candidates, both parties, in tech-heavy districts
What they got: No AI safety bills passed at state level between 2024-2026. Federal AI executive order momentum stalled. The industry maintained freedom to scale without transparency requirements, training-data audits, or algorithmic accountability frameworks.
Who Benefits, Who Pays
Who benefits:
- OpenAI: Unencumbered training on scraped internet data, proprietary models, no liability for downstream harms
- a16z: Portfolio companies with AI exposure (Mistral, Hugging Face, etc.) face no regulatory overhead
- Sam Altman: Preserves OpenAI’s market dominance and valuation in an unregulated space
Who pays:
- The public: No transparency into AI training practices, copyright infringement of training data, algorithmic bias in high-stakes decisions
- Content creators: Training data harvested without consent or compensation
- Workers in AI-affected sectors (journalism, software, creative): No labor protections as AI displacement accelerates
The class dynamic: tech oligarchs use venture capital wealth to purchase political exclusion from the rules that constrain traditional industries. They get to scale first, capture markets, then ask for regulation that locks in their dominance (as they did with Facebook and Google antitrust).
Investigation Roadmap
- FEC filing audit: Pull all “Leading the Future” super PAC filings from FEC database. Cross-reference donors against a16z LP roster and OpenAI cap table.
- Brockman’s revolving door: Timeline of Brockman’s government service, advisory roles, private sector income. Look for simultaneous federal advisory role + PAC control.
- State legislature interviews: Contact Alex Bores’ office, other Assembly members who faced opposition. Did they receive intelligence about PAC opposition before bills were drafted?
- VC firm tracking: Map a16z and Sequoia Capital board interlocks with federal AI policy bodies. Look for ad hoc advisors who funded the PAC.
- Comparative analysis: Did similar PACs emerge for nuclear, biotech, or fintech regulation? Is this a template?
Sources
- Gizmodo: “The Super PAC Bankrolling Silicon Valley’s Political War on AI Safety” (Tier 2)
- Fortune: “Sam Brockman’s $100 Million Bet on Deregulation” (Tier 2)
- OpenSecrets: Leading the Future PAC FEC Filings (Tier 1)
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