*Stanford’s Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) published a highly respected annual report on the state of AI around the world.*

Earlier this week the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) published the Artificial Intelligence Index Report 2025. HAI’s annual report is a globally respected overview of the state of the art in AI technological development, business adoption, policymaking, and public life.

The full 2025 report is available at the HAI website, and by selecting the image below.

about stanford hai

The Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) is an interdisciplinary institute established in 2019 to advance AI research, education, policy, and practice. Stanford HAI brings together thought leaders from academia, industry, government, and civil society to shape the development and responsible deployment of AI.

ABOUT CHAPTER 6: AI POLICY IN 2024

The 2025 AI Index Report includes an entire section (Chapter 6) devoted to a retrospective of AI policymaking, proposals, and public investment in 2024.

We’ve pulled five major learnings from Chapter 6, as detailed below.

1. U.S. states are leading the way on AI legislation

In 2016, only one state-level AI-related law was passed, increasing to 49 by 2023. In the past year alone, that number more than doubled to 131. While proposed AI bills at the federal level have also increased, the number passed remains low.

**States are passing AI laws**

State legislatures proposed 629 AI-related laws in 2024, and passed 131 of them.

**Congress is not passing AI laws**

Congress proposed 211 laws in 2024 but passed only 4 of them, and still has not passed a major comprehensive AI law.

2. california, Colorado led the state AI policy surge

California, home to most of America’s tech giants and AI startups, also leads the nation in its AI-related policy initiatives. The state legislature last year introduced 41 AI-related bills and passed more than half of them. Utah, Maryland, and Virginia showed a surprising appetite for AI-related legislation.

Don’t judge a state’s interest and activity entirely by volume, however. Colorado passed only four AI-related bills into law in 2024, but one of them was the Colorado Artificial Intelligence Act—arguably the nation’s most impactful new AI law.

*Source: HAI Artificial Intelligence Report 2025, Chapter 6, p. 18*

3. deepfake protections were a top priority in 2024

Legislators in many states, alarmed by the harm of abusive deepfake images targeting minors, proposed and passed 36 laws protecting state residents from AI-generated intimate imagery abuse in 2024.

A second area of protection: Enacting state laws prohibiting the abuse of deepfake images in electoral campaigns.

Also of concern: Deepfake imagery targeting performers, artists, and other creative professionals. Tennessee led the way with its ELVIS Act, meant to protect the artists who fuel the state’s economically powerful country music industry.

*Source: HAI Artificial Intelligence Report 2025, Chapter 6, p. 21*

4. it’s a Bipartisan issue: red and blue states both passed important AI laws

California and Colorado dominated the AI legislative policy headlines in 2024, but a closer look shows that legislators from both parties created and passed important AI-related legislation.

Among the significant Republican-led initiatives:

Alabama adopted strict protections regarding AI-generated deceptive media meant to mislead voters or harm a candidate.
Tennessee passed the aforementioned ELVIS Act to protect its artists and country music industry from AI-generated audio and visual deepfakes.

Five significant state AI laws adopted in 2024

*Source: HAI Artificial Intelligence Report 2025, Chapter 6, p. 20.*

5. The U.S. far outspends other nations in public AI investment

The United States is far ahead of other nations in its public investment in AI research and technology, both in total AI-related contract value and per-capita spend.

Between 2013-2023, the United States spent $1.58 million per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Finland ($1.29m), Denmark ($1.27m), and the U.K. ($0.84m).

Here’s what each nation spent on government AI contracts in 2023, the most recent year for which data is available (numbers in millions of U.S. dollars):

Five AI policy takeaways from the new Stanford HAI Index Report