Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act
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Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act[1]
United States — Federal[1]
Proposed legislation[1]
Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act; Senate S. 5493 and House companion H.R. 10538 (119th Congress).[2][3][1]
Introduced proposal: Sanders and Casar announced introduction on September 23, 2026; the Senate Commerce Committee lists Senate bill S. 5493 as read twice and referred to that committee. The Congressional Record Index identifies the bill number.[2] On September 24, Representative Greg Casar introduced House companion H.R. 10538, which was referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.[4][3][5]
See the timeline and source documents below.
Not recorded as a single article-wide date; see the dated source notes.
Legislative record — September 3, 2026
Sanders and Casar announced the forthcoming Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act on September 3; the sponsors said the proposal would permanently prohibit development and deployment of artificial superintelligence and temporarily pause advanced-AI development until a new federal regulator establishes safety rules and a model-review process.[1][6]
The proposal would establish a Cabinet-level AI safety agency advised by an Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board, authorize monitoring of frontier systems and supervision of dangerous-capability removal, and direct the United States to pursue international agreements and export controls aimed at preventing artificial-superintelligence development worldwide.[1] It would also authorize forced dissolution of entities and prison terms of up to 20 years for individuals who violate or circumvent the proposed restrictions.[1][6]
The sponsors' September 3 announcement described the measure as forthcoming, and contemporaneous reporting said they planned to introduce it; neither cited source identified a bill number.[1][6]
September 15, 2026: planned introduction
In prepared remarks for the September 15, 2026 Pro-Human Assembly, Sanders said he would introduce the proposal with Greg Casar the following week. He reiterated a permanent superintelligence prohibition and a temporary pause on advanced-AI development pending safety rules.[7] Roll Call separately reported his expectation that bill text would be released the following week. These statements did not establish that the bill had already been introduced.[8]
September 23, 2026: bill introduced
Sanders and Casar announced introduction of the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act on September 23. Their release and independent Associated Press reporting describe the proposed permanent superintelligence prohibition, temporary pause on advanced-AI development, and new Cabinet-level Department of Artificial Intelligence. The sponsors published bill text; the Senate Commerce Committee lists the measure as read twice and referred. The Congressional Record Index lists the Senate measure as S. 5493.[2][4][9][5] See September 23 digest coverage.
September 24, 2026: House companion introduced
Representative Greg Casar introduced H.R. 10538, the House companion to the Sanders proposal, on September 24. The official House bill text proposes a Department of Artificial Intelligence, a temporary pause on covered advanced-AI development until department staffing and rules are in place, and a prohibition on artificial superintelligence development and deployment. The House referred the proposal to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; it has not been enacted.[3]
Related coverage
- September 15, 2026: competing congressional approaches
- United States policy on catastrophic AI risk
- September 3, 2026
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Office of Sen. Bernie Sanders, “Sanders, Casar to Introduce Legislation to Ban Artificial Superintelligence and Temporarily Pause Advanced AI Development,” September 3, 2026
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Congressional Record Index, “Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act,” 119th Congress, listing S. 5493, published October 1, 2026; official index entry reviewed.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 H.R. 10538, introduced House text, September 24, 2026, full text reviewed; GovInfo congressional bill metadata confirms number, sponsor and referral.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Office of Sen. Bernie Sanders, September 23, 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, 2026 legislation listing, accessed September 27, 2026.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 The Hill, “Sanders, Casar call for artificial superintelligence ban amid rogue AI hackings,” September 3, 2026
- ↑ Office of Senator Bernie Sanders, prepared remarks for the Pro-Human Assembly, September 15, 2026.
- ↑ Allison Mollenkamp and Savannah Behrmann, Roll Call, “AI threats confront a Congress far from erecting guardrails,” September 15, 2026.
- ↑ Associated Press, Joey Cappelletti, September 23, 2026.