We Can’t Allow a Handful of Greedy People to Play God’: Bernie Sanders Takes Aim at Big Tech Billionaires Over AI Power

On Monday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) escalated his push for tougher AI regulation, warning that a small group of Big Tech billionaires should not be allowed to determine the technology’s impact on society without public oversight.

Sanders Warns of AI ‘Oligarchy’

"The most pressing issue of our time is oligarchy & the power of Big Tech billionaires over AI," Sanders wrote on X, adding, "We can’t allow a handful of greedy people to play God & determine the future of humanity—our economy, environment, democracy, privacy & more—without public input."

"CONGRESS MUST ACT," he added./p> figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x">div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

The most pressing issue of our time is oligarchy & the power of Big Tech billionaires over AI.br>br>We can’t allow a handful of greedy people to play God & determine the future of humanity—our economy, environment, democracy, privacy & more—without public input.br>br>CONGRESS MUST ACT./p>— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 7, 2026/blockquote> /div>

The comments came days after Sanders and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) announced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, one of Congress's most aggressive AI proposals yet./p> div class="bz-read-next-block" data-variant="card" data-news-mode="manual" >

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Sanders Wants Superintelligence Banned

The legislation would permanently prohibit the development and deployment of superintelligent AI while temporarily pausing advanced AI development until a federal regulator establishes safety standards.

It would also call for international agreements to prevent superintelligence from being developed globally. The proposal has already drawn criticism from investors and technology policy advocates.

Pershing Square founder Bill Ackman argued that halting U.S. development could allow geopolitical rivals to reach superintelligence first.

Sanders’ AI Push Expands to Data Centers, Public Ownership

Sanders has also pushed for a national data-center moratorium, later working with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to put the idea into legislation. While initially facing resistance from Democrats, similar calls have since gained bipartisan support.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has halted new data-center approvals pending reviews of their water and power needs, while Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) now requires local approval for new projects.

In June, Sanders proposed giving the public ownership stakes in major AI labs, with the government having a say in deployment decisions. The idea echoes proposals from Anthropic and OpenAI.

Last week, Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA)/a> CEO Jensen Huang urged regulators to focus on real-world risks, saying, "Don’t regulate hypothetical theoretical harm, regulate actual and pragmatic harm."

Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT)/a> co-founder Bill Gates has also said he would support a credible global plan to slow AI advances, though he acknowledged such a plan is unlikely.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors./p> div class="bz-read-next-block" data-variant="card" data-news-mode="manual" >

strong> Read Also: a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/tech/26/08/61098709/bernie-sanders-zuckerberg-altman-ai-machines-human-control-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Bernie Sanders Asks Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman to 'Stop Building Machines' That Humans Can't Control: 'Not Too Late to Avoid Disaster'/a> /strong> /p>

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