This Executive Order attempts through executive action what Congress has yet to accomplish through legislation. The Order creates mechanisms to challenge and defund state AI laws before establishing the substantive federal framework that would justify preemption. Preemption without a meaningful federal standard is not harmonization; it is deregulation by another name. (See .) The directive requiring the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto and the Assistant to the President for Science and…

At the House Financial Services Committee meeting on AI, members got the diagnosis right but the prescription wrong. Representative William Timmons correctly warned that a "patchwork of state laws" creates a compliance nightmare, raising costs and stifling innovation. However, the proposed solution, federal preemption, requires Congress to occupy the field. Preemption without a substantive federal framework isn't harmonization; it is a free for all. While industry witnesses touted AI’s…

FINRA’s inclusion of a standalone GenAI section is a welcome recognition of a fundamental shift in the industry. The 2026 Report is striking in how practically it treats this emerging technology. Rather than trying to invent an entirely new AI rulebook, FINRA roots GenAI in the familiar pillars of supervision, communications, recordkeeping, and investor protection. That is exactly the approach that gives firms a clear path forward: treat GenAI as one more powerful tool that must live inside…