Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is drawing a line in the sand, positioning Florida as the frontline in the battle against unchecked artificial intelligence (AI) expansion.
With a bold agenda to curb AI’s societal and economic fallout, DeSantis is clashing with tech giants and even President Donald Trump, Politico reported.
Trump champions a laissez-faire approach to AI for global dominance.
However, DeSantis is raising concerns about jobs, community resources, and the very fabric of democracy.
During an AI event in Jupiter, DeSantis didn’t mince words.
The Florida governor is warning against what he called a dangerous “transhumanist strain” in AI tech.
“The idea of this transhumanist strain, that somehow this is going to supplant humans and this other stuff, we have to reject that with every fiber of our being,” DeSantis declared.
The warning is a blow to Silicon Valley’s utopian dreams, and it’s refreshing to hear a leader prioritize human dignity over machine worship.
During another event in Sebring, DeSantis doubled down, slamming AI-generated content as little more than deceptive junk.
“Let’s not try to act like some type of fake videos or fake songs are going to deliver us to some kind of utopia,” he said.
Meanwhile, Trump’s pushing for federal oversight with minimal restrictions, even threatening lawsuits against states like Florida for daring to set their own rules.
Nevertheless, DeSantis remains unfazed, leaning on states’ rights under the 10th Amendment.
At the heart of DeSantis’ crusade is a push to halt the spread of massive data centers, which he and local Floridians see as resource hogs causing noise, pollution, and utility spikes.
Projects like a proposed 202-acre facility in Palm Beach County are on hold, while St. Lucie County residents fight a $13.5 billion center threatening agricultural land, a classic case of corporate interests steamrolling community needs.
DeSantis isn’t buying the tech industry’s “jobs and growth” pitch, pointing to examples like Louisiana’s mammoth data hub as a cautionary tale Florida must avoid.
As Florida’s legislative session looms on Jan. 13, 2026, DeSantis has made AI restrictions a top priority, proposing consumer notifications, bans on AI-driven mental health counseling, and parental controls over kids’ tech use.
Lawmakers are already advancing a bill to ensure human oversight in insurance decisions, a sensible guardrail against algorithm tyranny, while the state House held extensive hearings to weigh innovation against protection.
DeSantis frames this as a bipartisan fight to shield families and ratepayers from AI’s darker side, building on Florida’s existing laws against AI misuse in political ads and child exploitation, a rare issue where common sense might just prevail over partisan noise.
READ MORE – Number of Children Turning to AI Chatbots for Mental Health ‘Therapy’ Surges
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