SpaceX Agrees to Testify Before NYC Council After Dodging AI Safety Subpoena

SpaceX Commits to Testimony After Subpoena Standoff

SpaceX has agreed to testify before the NYC Council on Friday at 10 a.m. ET as part of a legislative investigation into AI safety, with Gabriela Castillo Madrid, the company's AI policy leader, scheduled to appear via video conference1

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. The agreement came only after the NYC Council threatened to seek court enforcement of a subpoena that Elon Musk's company had initially ignored2

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. Council Speaker Julie Menin issued the subpoena on September 28, ordering that Musk or another SpaceX representative testify, but the company skipped the October 5 hearing where representatives from Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta, and Google appeared voluntarily1

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SpaceX committed to testifying two days after the council notified the company of its plan to have the subpoena enforced by a judge3

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. The council warned that SpaceX's failure to comply could subject the company to penalties under New York City laws and regulations2

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. "Conspicuously absent was SpaceXAI, which is unacceptable," Menin stated, emphasizing that New Yorkers deserve to hear directly from companies developing powerful AI technology about safeguards and accountability measures5

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NYC Council's Probe into AI Safety Risks

The NYC Council opened its investigation following a month of intense debate surrounding the risks posed by advanced AI models1

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. The council aims to assess whether fast-emerging AI safety risks to public safety, cybersecurity, economic stability, and privacy warrant immediate legislative action to protect New Yorkers2

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. Carmen De La Rosa, chair of the Committee on Technology, emphasized the importance of SpaceX's participation given the proliferation of Elon Musk's technology at the federal level, stating the council expects robust context about data privacy, safeguards, and whistleblower protections2

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The October 5 hearing ran close to ten hours, with representatives from Google, Meta, OpenAI, and Anthropic testifying under oath5

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. An Anthropic whistleblower told the council it was "more likely than not" that humanity loses control of AI, warning the outcome "could end in human extinction"5

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. Notably, none of the companies offered odds on a catastrophic AI event, and none committed to pulling a model that failed an independent validation safety review5

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Grok AI Model and Growing Legal Concerns

Musk merged xAI into SpaceX in February, creating a conglomerate that includes the Grok AI model, which is used by some federal agencies including the Pentagon1

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. SpaceX went public in June and is now valued at approximately $2 trillion, and in August completed a $60 billion acquisition of AI coding startup Cursor1

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. While SpaceX competes with Anthropic and OpenAI in the AI market, Grok trails far behind models from top rivals2

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Lawsuits are mounting against SpaceX after Grok's image generator enabled mass production and distribution of deepfake pornography based on images of real people who did not consent1

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. By skipping the earlier hearing, SpaceX avoided direct questioning from U.K. Parliament member Jess Asato, who testified about experiencing AI-enabled online harassment1

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. Asato is suing xAI in the U.K. after Grok users created and distributed sexualized images of her without consent, seeking damages and alleging misuse of private information and breaches of European data protection rules1

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. According to the BBC, Asato criticized SpaceX for its "arrogance" in not appearing at the initial hearing1

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Potential AI Regulation on the Horizon

The NYC Council is considering ten bills to regulate AI in the city, including proposals for independent validation of AI systems, whistleblower incentives, and a private right of action for New Yorkers harmed by AI3

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. Additional measures under review include prohibiting unauthorized depiction of public officials by AI, third-party validation requirements, chatbot data privacy protections, and the ability for humans to shut down AI models4

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. Council Speaker Menin emphasized that leaving tech companies to police themselves isn't enough4

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Gabriela Castillo Madrid joined SpaceX's government affairs team earlier this year after working at X, Musk's social media company now owned by SpaceX, and spending almost three years at the U.S. Department of Commerce1

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. Lawmakers are expected to press the company on data privacy, safeguards against potential harm, and whistleblower protections during Friday's testimony4

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. The council maintains that the public deserves to know how AI systems are being developed and who is responsible when something goes wrong4

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. SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment ahead of the meeting1

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