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The Biggest Pro-AI Super Pac Network Didn’t Really Impact the Midterms
Leading the Future, a major network of pro-AI political groups, ended the midterms with more than $20 million left and many successful candidates it had backed. But it gave most of its general-election support to candidates in safe races, while its involvement in a few more competitive contests did little to show it could shape outcomes.
The network launched in 2025 with about $100 million from prominent technology investors and spent roughly $26 million on primary races. It spent millions opposing Alex Bores, who ran in New York on AI safety; he finished second in a crowded Democratic primary, while another candidate campaigning on tech accountability and AI safety won. Funding later fell away, and an NBC exit poll found 56 per cent of voters said AI and data centres played a major role in their vote.
In short
- Leading the Future had more than $20 million left after the midterms.
- Most of its support went to candidates in safe races.
- AI and data centres mattered to 56 per cent of voters in an exit poll.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Leading the Future’s backing of many winning candidates and its substantial primary spending suggest that well-funded advocacy can help put AI policy on the political agenda and support candidates who favour continued innovation. Supporters may argue that backing candidates in safe races still builds relationships and signals that voters and policymakers should weigh the benefits of investment and technological leadership.
The case against
The network’s large unspent balance and concentration of general-election support in safe races leave little evidence that it could change outcomes where voters faced a real choice. Its spending against Alex Bores did not prevent another candidate campaigning on tech accountability and AI safety from winning, and the results in competitive contests offered no clear proof that its money translated into influence.
Explained simply
Political action committees, or PACs, raise and spend money to influence elections, often by supporting candidates or criticising their opponents. Leading the Future is a network of groups backed by technology investors who favour fewer limits on artificial intelligence and the companies developing it.
The network’s activity came as some candidates argued for stronger oversight of AI and data centres, which use large amounts of electricity and land. Its spending and the election results have drawn attention to how much influence wealthy donors and organised campaign groups can have, and to voters’ concerns about new technology.
AI safety refers to efforts to reduce the risk that artificial intelligence systems cause harm. The debate includes questions about how the technology should be regulated, who should be accountable when it causes problems, and how its rapid growth may affect communities.
AI Elections Politics Technology