Squawk Pod · Sep 24, 2026
With Steve Case, Chairman and CEO of Revolution and Co-Founder of AOL
About 80% of Americans have said they are concerned about AI, Steve Case said, and that is turning the technology into a political issue. Without federal rules soon, he said, the country risks a patchwork of state laws or a backlash that brings much heavier regulation.
Much of the tech industry argues that any regulation will slow innovation or hand the lead to China. Case, who invests in AI companies himself, said doing nothing would be reckless and that the industry's pledges are no longer enough.
"Just self-regulation I don't think is going to be sufficient."
Steve Case, co-founder of AOL and chairman and CEO of Revolution, on Squawk Pod, helped build one of the first consumer internet companies. He made his case for a federal AI disclosure law in a New York Times opinion piece this week.
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Here are the 5 arguments that matter.
Key Takeaways
About 80% of Americans have voiced concern about AI, which Case said is making it a political issue
Without federal action, he warned of 50 different state laws or a backlash that brings heavier rules
He wants rules that start with disclosure of problems, with Congress giving them teeth
AI will be an issue in the 2028 election alongside affordability, he said
Europe's AI rules are stifling innovation, but doing nothing would be reckless
AI companies' liability is real, he said, and he does not want them nationalized
1. Time for Federal Rules
Joe Kernen introduced Case, co-founder of AOL and chairman and CEO of Revolution, and said that by the time people realize something needs to be done about a new technology, it can be too late.
Case said he is excited about AI, and Revolution has invested in companies using it in healthcare, farming and other sectors. But the speed of adoption and its effects have worried the public, with about 80% of Americans expressing concern. That is why he wrote an opinion piece in The New York Times calling for regulation that starts with disclosure, so that problems get reported.
"If we don't do something soon, I think we're going to run the risk of 50 states doing 50 different laws, which are going to be really difficult" — Steve Case
The other risk, he said, is a backlash that leads to much heavier regulation, as with other new technologies. He noted that some AI company leaders said at the United Nations the day before that the industry must move beyond talk. Self-regulation is a start, he said, but it needs teeth, which means Congress passing something.
Kernen said "reasonable regulation" sounded like an oxymoron. Case said most technologies end up with some kind of regulation.
