Cox backs AI development while urging state-level guardrails; says Utah model draws international interest

Gov. Spencer Cox said Utah should promote artificial-intelligence development while putting guardrails around dangerous or high-risk uses.

Cox framed AI as a national-security and economic priority — “there is an AI arms race happening right now” — that requires expanded infrastructure and energy to support data centers. At the same time, he said regulators should help manage harmful implementations and emphasized the state's work to craft rules for risky AI uses such as mental-health tools.

“It's one thing to support it for national security purposes and another thing to say that I'm extremely worried,” Cox said, adding that the state’s approach — which allows companies to work closely with regulators to limit high-risk uses — has attracted interest from international experts and provinces in Canada.

Cox noted social media’s harms as a cautionary example, saying he had been a tech optimist earlier in his career but that the internet and social platforms had “had a debilitating impact on our young people.” He warned AI could worsen certain harms if left unchecked.

Discussion points included the need for more energy production to support AI infrastructure, the potential for AI to augment scarce services (he cited therapy/mental-health tools as an example), and the need for oversight on implementation. Cox said Utah’s model — a collaborative approach between companies and regulators — is being studied abroad.

Ending: Cox called for balanced policy that supports innovation while regulating implementations that could harm people or public safety.