Menin Busts Out Subpoena Power To Compel SpaceX To Testify at AI Hearing

The leader of New York’s City Council is bringing Silicon Valley to Manhattan — whether the tech bros like it or not.On Monday, City Council Speaker Julie Menin announced that leaders from leading artificial intelligence platforms including Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, and Meta will testify next week at a hearing on the dangers raised by and possible legislative solutions for their products, the first time the tech giants will offer public testimony under oath. The promises to appear were hard won, according to a statement issued by City Council on Monday. Only Meta accepted the initial invitation, while Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI agreed on Sunday, after attorneys for the City Council threatened subpoenas. Ms. Menin made good on the warning Monday, issuing a legal summons to SpaceXAI, the lone holdout. “As of today, only Elon Musk’s SpaceXAI has not responded. As such, the council has issued a subpoena today compelling SpaceXAI to testify before us,” the speaker said in a video posted on X Monday afternoon, highlighting the “tens of thousands of New Yorkers” employed by the companies and recent pleas for AI regulation that have emerged from within the ranks of the technorati.“If they can speak about the threats posed by their technology and call for regulatory action, then they can come to City Hall and answer directly to the 8.5 million people of this city,” she continued.Representatives for SpaceXAI did not immediately respond to a questions from The New York Sun.The announcement comes just days after Councilmember Frank Morano urged Ms. Menin to use the council’s subpoena power to compel testimony from the Mayor’s Office. City officials have declined to appear at two oversight hearings in recent months over the disastrous rollout of the pied-à-terre tax and a secret chat the Mamdani administration uses to disseminate talking points to influencers. The move also follows recent high-profile remarks from more than two dozen lawmakers who told Axios they don’t use — and, in many cases, do not understand — AI, a troubling revelation amid dire warnings from top researchers within companies like Anthropic who say that if not properly constrained, the emergent technology could erase human life within the next decade. Ms. Menin, who is both term-limited on the City Council and famous for her relentless effectiveness, seized on the opening, as rumors continue to swirl regarding a potential Senate campaign. Less than a week after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for AI development to slow down, Ms. Menin set a date for the City Council hearing. A legislative package of 10 bills followed on Friday. “New York City is fast becoming the technology and AI capital of the world, which we want to encourage,” Ms. Menin said in a statement announcing the proposals, asserting the city’s “even greater responsibility to ensure that we have the appropriate safeguards.” “While the federal government fails to meet the moment and take decisive action, New York City will explore nation-leading measures that protect the public while allowing innovation to thrive. We can and must be both pro-innovation and pro-safety.”

Menin Busts Out Subpoena Power To Compel SpaceX To Testify at AI Hearing

Menin Busts Out Subpoena Power To Compel SpaceX To Testify at AI Hearing

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