B-Roll, Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Highlights Next Steps in Nation-Leading Commission to Address Impacts of AI on New York’s Workforce

Governor Kathy Hochul today convened a meeting of her nation-leading FutureWorks Commission, as it prepares recommendations that will shape policies to protect workers across New York amid the major impacts of AI on the American workforce.

B-ROLL of the Governor at the meeting is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor's Flickr page will post photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

First I want to thank the members of the FutureWorks Commission who just joined me in another thoughtful, thought-provoking conversation that we've launched this organization, this entity months ago to talk about how we can meet the challenges of the moment, which is the possible displacement and the reorientation of people in this era of AI. I also want to thank particularly our co-chairs. We are fortunate to have Tom Perez, who's a former Secretary of Labor under President Obama, and has been a real champion for working people. Molly Kinder, whose research out of Washington and here in New York focuses on the intersection of labor policy and AI, and she's just one of the most brilliant people you'll ever want to meet. Thasunda Brown Duckett, the renowned leader at TIAA. And everyone else who's joined me. We've had leaders such as the CEO of IBM, the CEO of Chobani, people from Boston Consulting Group, thank you for hosting us in this magnificent space, and others who joined me representing different sectors. Mario Cilento, the head of the AFL-CIO for the whole country or for the whole - whole country in my mind, but New York State. Everything is New York anyhow, so it's basically the country.

But when I announced the FutureWorks Commission earlier this year, it was to answer one of the defining questions of our era: how we can make sure that New Yorkers, all New Yorkers, share in the benefits of the innovation economy. How do we support hardworking families who worry that their families and their livelihoods are at risk because of AI? But also how we can harness AI technology to boost employment and improve training and educational opportunities for everyone.

So I asked for specific policy proposals by the end of this year. Our committee members are some of the top leaders in business, technology, research and labor. And I challenged them to go out into their networks and their professional networks and their communities and really take a deep look at these issues on behalf of New York State. Over the last few months, they've been sharing what they've learned, and while we will finalize the specific policy proposals by the end of December, today they brought a set of ideas that'll help us take questions, take us from questions to solutions. Also, the end of the year is important because I'll be devising my policy ambitions for the next State of the State address. We develop that throughout the fall and through December, and I'm looking forward to recommendations for that purpose as well.

In today's meeting, it was clear that we need to develop those solutions across four key areas. First, we're identifying how AI is reshaping different types of jobs, and in what parts of the state, and identifying the best ways to track that moving forward. Second, we're looking at the best ways to train workers as their businesses adopt AI technology, and for current workers who need support, possibly retraining, to ensure that they get that support. Third, we'll make sure that New York's social safety net remains strong and flexible to protect those maybe most vulnerable to direct workforce impacts in the coming years. And fourth, we're going to identify the best ways to harness the benefits of AI for everyday New Yorkers.

Our workforce, small businesses and entrepreneurs all need to benefit from these opportunities. Now these are certainly complicated topics. I challenged us because we are New York, the Empire State, to not just be first, but be the first in coming up with really meaningful, thoughtful solutions. And we don't have all the answers yet on how AI right now will impact our workers. But we do know we need to take action to protect those most at risk and set everyone up for success in AI-enabled future.

Once again, I want to thank everyone who donated their time to participate and help guide our thinking in the months and years ahead. This is just one part of it. This commission is part of my comprehensive strategy when it comes to addressing the challenges of artificial intelligence. Because when the people building the world's most powerful AI systems, they themselves are sounding the alarm, it seems wise to pay attention. Just in the last few days, we've learned that there may be thousands more occurrences of AI agents going rogue and acting in ways that bypass guardrails, including incidents involving US education and commerce departments, the SEC, and the Australian government websites. It's increasingly clear that we need smart regulations on AI.

I wish we had a federal government that would lead the nation on this, so we could have some consistency and uniformity. But [if] the Trump administration refuses to lead on this, New York will. We're not afraid to step up because the concerns are real. I hear about them everywhere from churches in Harlem all the way to Buffalo. That's why I introduced a one-year moratorium on new hyperscale data centers, why I signed the RAISE Act, where starting in November, large frontier AI developers must register with the State. Then in January, those AI companies will be mandated by law to comply with strict transparency standards. They'll be required to publish their safety protocols and report any critical safety incidences within seventy-two hours. These are the most strict disclosure requirements in the nation.

To be clear, none of this is stifling innovation. It's not our intent. In fact, our tech economy is booming. In New York City, the metro area just surpassed San Francisco Bay Area in terms of being the center of the high-tech workforce, with nearly 400,000 high-paying, high-quality jobs located right here. But it's our responsibility to make sure that AI is used safely to benefit our workforce, not threaten it.

We're standing at a critical juncture in the history of our economy, and perhaps even our entire society. AI could be the most impactful technological revolution since the invention of the Internet. This is not time to sit back and let history happen to us. This is the time to take the reins and decide what kind of future we want to build for ourselves, our children and their children.

Once again, I want to thank everyone involved in FutureWorks for their partnership as we move forward with confidence and courage to give all New Yorkers the opportunity to thrive.