For decades, U.S. agriculture industries have advertised products through quasi-government programs. (Think “Got Milk?” and “Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner.”) Now, those marketing campaigns are getting a revamp for the social media era -- and that’s causing tension among American farmers and advocates. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Marcia Brown breaks down an atypical tech story about the controversial rise of the new food influencer.

Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s top tech regulator, is busier than ever — contending with antitrust cases, internet regulations and, soon, artificial intelligence rules. And yet, her tenure is almost up. Unless she’s chosen for a third term, Vestager will leave the European Commission later this year just as its most consequential tech laws are getting started. On POLITICO Tech, Vestager delves into the EU’s AI ambitions, her Silicon Valley crackdown and her hopes to stay around longer.

The CEOs of five major social media platforms are being hauled up to Capitol Hill today, including Meta's Mark Zuckerberg and X's Linda Yaccarino. They'll face a grilling from the Senate Judiciary Committee over their handling of child pornography and other harmful content on their platforms. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Rebecca Kern breaks down what to expect from the hearing — and which lawmakers will be looking to seize a moment.

Former Republican Congressman Will Hurd spent two years on the board of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, and is out in a new Op-Ed in Politico magazine warning that AI is too powerful to be left in the hands of a few Silicon Valley players. On POLITICO Tech, Hurd tells host Steven Overly what can be done.

Key government programs that subsidize internet access for low-income and rural communities are in jeopardy. And Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), who chairs the Senate’s broadband subcommittee, has been entrenched in the Capitol Hill debate to save them. On POLITICO Tech, Luján tells host Steven Overly what to expect from the bipartisan working group pursuing a solution and why the next several weeks will be crucial.

A robocall mimicking the voice of President Joe Biden earlier this week is the latest instance of AI-generated deepfakes invading the campaign trail. But Pindrop CEO Vijay Balasubramaniyan warns these audio dupes could soon erode trust in just about every facet of our lives. On POLITICO Tech, Balasubramaniyan argues voice analysis technology can spot the fakes and makes the case for policymakers to act now.

One of the biggest tech companies at the center of the microchip war between the U.S. and China is actually Dutch. ASML manufactures equipment used by the world’s biggest semiconductor companies, making it the target of U.S. export controls aimed at curtailing Beijing’s tech ambitions. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Pieter Haeck joins host Steven Overly to detail ASML’s geopolitical predicament and the CEO’s message during a recent interview.

At a time when global institutions are under strain, United Nations tech envoy Amandeep Gill says AI has the potential to be an “area of collaboration.” But making sure some nations aren’t left behind will require a new set of incentives for wealthy countries and tech companies. On POLITICO Tech, Gill delves into some of the existential threats around AI and what can be done about them.

Arizona State is the first university to ink a partnership with OpenAI, bringing a business-grade version of ChatGPT into classrooms and research labs. It marks a major embrace of artificial intelligence at a time when many universities are trepidatious about what it means for the future of learning. On POLITICO Tech, ASU’s enterprise chief information officer, Lev Gonick, tells host Steven Overly why AI will be transformational.

The Biden administration created a court to hear complaints from European citizens who accuse the U.S. government of unfairly spying on them. It was part of a deal with the European Union that allows companies to freely move customer data across the Atlantic. But privacy advocates are planning to sue -- saying the court is too opaque and fails to uphold EU privacy rights. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Alfred Ng takes us inside Biden’s secret surveillance court.

The World Economic Forum has been happening in Davos Switzerland this week – a gathering of the world’s muckety mucks, world leaders and billionaires. The setting is posh, the ski slopes are freshly powdered and the champagne is (presumably) ice cold. New this year? The streets are lined with AI. Stuart Russell, a leading academic in the field of artificial intelligence and at Davos this week, talks with host Steven Overly.

Helen Dixon is Europe’s most powerful privacy regulator. As the head of Ireland’s data privacy watchdog, she has overseen the largest investigations to date into tech companies for violations of the EU’s landmark General Data Protection Regulation. But next month, she is leaving the role after nearly a decade. On POLITICO Tech, reporter Clothilde Goujard talks with Dixon on her way out the door.

The growing number of connected devices, many of them now equipped with AI, is putting new demands on the U.S. supply of spectrum. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is implementing a new strategy to prevent a potential crunch. On POLITICO Tech, Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson tells host Steven Overly how NTIA is tackling issues related to spectrum and AI accountability.

CES is something of a gadget pageant, where companies show off out-there technologies in over-the-top displays. But last week’s annual tech gathering in Las Vegas also offers insight into where consumer technology is headed. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly breaks down some of the weird and wonderful tech trends at CES with Wired’s senior reviews editor, Julian Chokkattu.

At CES, no foreign country is better represented than China. It’s second only to the U.S. in the number of companies on display — many of them looking to expand in the U.S. market. Meanwhile, American skepticism of Chinese-made technologies has hit an all-time high. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly talks U.S. tech competition with Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson, deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger, and Siemens U.S. CEO Barbara Humpton.

The complex relationship between technology and mental health has captured increased attention in recent years, especially among regulators, amid rising concerns about the negative effects of social media, video games and artificial intelligence. On POLITICO Tech, the CEO of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Arthur Evans, tells host Steven Overly how to make tech work better for humans.

If there’s a unifying theme to this year’s CES, it’s that artificial intelligence is everywhere. But the anxiety about what AI means for the future of work has been on display, too. On POLITICO Tech, host Steven Overly discusses how those concerns are being addressed at the world’s largest employer with Walmart executive vice president Dan Bartlett, as well as the labor movement’s outspoken skepticism with Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler.

Greetings from Las Vegas! POLITICO Tech host Steven Overly travels to CES this week to explore how the annual gadget pageant reflects many of the big tech debates around privacy, safety and artificial intelligence. On the show today, he gets the download on what to expect from this year’s CES from Consumer Technology Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro and Digital Future Daily author Derek Robertson.

There are multiple court cases and legal tests that could influence tech regulation for years. The action is everywhere — in state courts, being looked at by federal judges – and of course at the Supreme Court, which is slated to hear two cases with major implications for online speech. Steven Overly talks with Alexandra Reeve Givens, a First Amendment scholar and the president and chief executive officer of the Center for Democracy and Technology, a DC-based nonprofit that advocates for digital rights and freedom of expression. And has filed legal briefs in a number of this year’s big cases.

What if generative AI could let you chat with doppelgangers of brilliant people, in their words, at any time? POLITICO’s Mohar Chatterjee digs into unnerving experiments from Beijing to Venice Beach to create AI-generated replicas of living human psychologists. Her story shows a policy vacuum around digital consent - and possibly, a new way for experts to imagine influence and legacy in the age of AI.

There are 22 million households enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program, each receiving a subsidy from the federal government for their monthly internet bill. But unless Congress acts, the program will soon run out of money. On POLITICO Tech, reporter John Hendel tells host Steven Overly why partisan politics could effectively kill the program, and what that would mean for closing the digital divide.

Little federal policymaking is likely to get done in an election year. But that doesn’t mean tech policy will be totally dead in Washington. On POLITICO Tech, Darrell West from the Brookings Institution explains what Congress could actually get done if lawmakers set aside their differences -- again, in an election year.

States passed dozens of new tech laws last year on issues like AI, data privacy and kids’ online safety. Congress… talked about a lot of laws. The University of North Carolina’s Matt Perault expects that dynamic to continue in 2024. On POLITICO Tech, Perault shares predictions for state-level tech policy in the year to come with host Steven Overly.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna is both making artificial intelligence and grappling with its effects. In this rebroadcast, Krishna tells host Steven Overly why AI makes must be held accountable and why he’s not exactly worried about AI displacing a bunch of human workers. Politico Tech will be taking a break for the rest of the year and will be back in your feeds on January 2nd, 2024.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) has been through his share of tech battles on Capitol Hill — and seen lawmakers fail to implement legislation time and again. Warner outlined his ideas for where Congress should start with AI regulation — ideas that will be worth watching for in the new year.