California governor orders panel to study AI kill switch; federal bill stalled

California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order directing an expert panel to study implementing an emergency kill switch for advanced AI systems.

The proposed federal Kill Switch Act would require frontier AI labs to establish shutdown mechanisms and empower the Department of Homeland Security to turn off AI systems.

Experts note that implementing a kill switch is impractical due to distributed global infrastructure, backup systems, cybersecurity risks, and potential autonomous self-preservation responses.