Meta pours $65 million into state elections to back AI-friendly politicians

Meta is investing $65 million to influence state-level elections across the US, backing politicians friendly to AI. It's the company's largest political spending push to date, the New York Times reports.

To do this, Meta has set up four Super PACs: two new groups - "Forge the Future Project" targeting Republicans and "Making Our Tomorrow" targeting Democrats - alongside two that already existed. Spending kicks off this week in Texas and Illinois. In Texas, where Meta is building three AI data centers, the money will go toward boosting Republican candidates. In Illinois, it's flowing into at least four races for seats in the state legislature.

The push appears driven by Meta's concern over a patchwork of state-level AI regulations. State races are relatively cheap to influence, which means $65 million can go a long way.