Support Rolls in from Academic Experts, AI Researchers for Kelly’s Make AI Work for Americans Act

This week, Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) introduced the Make AI Work for Americans Act, landmark legislation designed to make sure companies benefiting the most from AI pay their fair share and invest in American workers. The bill establishes a dedicated federal trust fund to support American workers, job seekers, and communities as the economy changes. Since its introduction, the bill has received broad support from national academic leaders.

Here's what academic leaders are saying about the Make AI Work for Americans Act:

"Ensuring that AI brings broad-based benefits is the defining challenge of our era. That task starts in the labor market, where we must make sure AI complements workers rather than simply displacing them, and creates pathways to better, well-paid careers. Senator Kelly's Make AI Work for Americans Act is a major step in this direction: it encourages the development and deployment of pro-worker AI; improves worker training; and strengthens the safety net so that nobody falls through the cracks," said Daron Acemoglu, Institute Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Daron Acemoglu on X: I am delighted to see lawmakers start tackling the problem of how to make AI's benefits more broadly shared. This requires both a change in the trajectory of AI in a more pro-worker direction, and more and better investments in worker skills, as Senator Kelly's bill emphasizes.

"The biggest economic question of our era is whether we use AI merely to replace people or to expand their capabilities to do new things, creating more widely shared prosperity. Senator Kelly's Make AI Work for Americans Act shapes that choice in the right direction: investing in workers, boosting entrepreneurship, modernizing the safety net, and exploring new approaches such as wage insurance. I'm delighted to support this thoughtful legislation," said Erik Brynjolfsson, Director, Stanford Digital Economy Lab.

"At a time when many are urging our policymakers to take AI's potential disruption seriously, it is good to see in this legislation a set of policies aimed at mitigating AI's negative impacts on workers-from those just starting out to those displaced mid-career," said Erika McEntarfer, former Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Tad and Dianne Taube Policy Fellow, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.

"Senator Kelly's Make AI Work for Americans Act represents a major step forward in rejecting an AI future that concentrates gains for the few while leaving millions of hard-working Americans behind. The Act provides admirably detailed revenue proposals to ensure that those profiting from AI-induced displacement of workers, help fund a major increase in opportunities for workers to transition to new careers, start new businesses, attain National Service jobs while also ensuring that unemployment benefits are substantial enough to support a worker's family while they strive to attain these new jobs. Importantly, Senator Kelly's call for a major expansion of National Service jobs could provide entry level workers being squeezed out by AI the chance to both serve their country and gain valuable work experience, judgment and managerial skills," said Gene Sperling, Director of the National Economic Council for Presidents Clinton and Obama, Senior Advisor to President Biden, Director of the Economic Dignity Lab at McCourt School at Georgetown.

Gene Sperling on X: Kudos to @SenMarkKelly for not waiting for major AI job dislocation to start laying the foundation for putting jobs & workers first. His bill admirably lays out specific AI revenue sources to fund not only needed training, but also National Service jobs & entrepreneurship.

"Artificial intelligence is changing how we learn, work, and create at an accelerated pace that demands we evolve in the way we manage this moment," said Michael Crow, President, Arizona State University, whose PhD in public administration was focused on science and technology policy. "Senator Mark Kelly's Make AI Work for Americans Act is a critical step forward at an inflection point in AI's progress, recognizing the need to equip Americans with the tools to navigate and participate in an economy being reshaped by this technology. The bill addresses AI literacy, workforce training, postsecondary education, and the needs of mid-career workers, presenting solutions that reflect the scale of the challenges ahead. ASU understands the fundamental responsibility of higher education to lead in a time of rapid technological change, and we are committed to helping drive the education and workforce approaches presented in this legislation."

Michael Crow on X: As AI transforms how we work, we need to be equally focused on expanding the opportunities people have to learn, adapt and succeed. I appreciate Sen. Mark Kelly advancing this important conversation.

"Arizona's community colleges are where technological change becomes opportunity for students, workers, and employers. Across our eleven independent college districts, preparing people for an AI-driven economy means connecting accessible education with the skills employers need. We support the Make AI Work for Americans Act's workforce provisions, particularly its investment in community college programs, employer partnerships, and services that help students complete their education and move into meaningful careers. We appreciate Senator Kelly's recognition that workers need opportunities to build new skills throughout their lives. From our largest cities to our rural and tribal communities, America's leadership in AI will depend on investing just as boldly in people as we do in technology," said Eric A. Heiser, PhD, President & CEO, Coconino Community College, Chair, Arizona Community College Coordinating Council (AC4).

"As we continue to learn what the impacts of artificial intelligence will be on American workplaces, one thing is clear: we must ensure workers are protected. The Make AI Work for Americans Act provides new resources to support workers by creating an AI Horizon Fund that can expand workforce development, create opportunities for small businesses, and shore up the safety net-all paid for by leading AI firms," said Heather Boushey, Professor of Practice, Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, University of Pennsylvania.

"How we support workers through the AI transition is one of the defining economic challenges of our time. I applaud Senator Kelly for putting forward economically sound legislation that is grounded in a clear understanding of how workers move through the labor market and uses the full set of tools we have to support workers at every stage of their careers," said Neale Mahoney, Professor of Economics and Director of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Stanford University.

"The legislation introduced by Senator Kelly is a timely and urgently needed step toward building labor market resilience and modernizing the institutions that build and protect American talent. The federal trust fund envisioned by this legislation is a model at the right time to confront a moment of deep uncertainty for workers while connecting them to good jobs. While predicting the magnitude of the effect of AI on the labor market is impossible, the range of potential disruption could occur on a scale comparable to the largest changes in employment and the nature of work in our history. More importantly, these disruptions may occur rapidly, and indeed the scenarios of greatest disruption might be those with the lowest lead-time to respond. Already, the half-life of skills in the labor market is evolving faster than our legacy systems can track. This tension between speed and uncertainty means that while the effect of AI is a fast-moving target about which we are still learning, policy to protect workers and empower them with skills cannot afford to simply take a "wait and see" approach. The workforce provisions of this legislation offer a platform to proactively strengthen and build the institutions that will be needed if AI is to be a driver of shared prosperity," said Professor Christophe Combemale, Carnegie Mellon University Engineering and Public Policy.

"I appreciate Senator Kelly's leadership on preparing Arizona's workers and communities for the AI transition. His focus on workforce training, apprenticeships and stronger university-community college partnerships aligns directly with the work the University of Arizona is doing across our state," said Suresh Garimella, President, University of Arizona, Distinguished Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

"Navajo Technical University applauds Senator Kelly for introducing the Make AI Work for Americans Act. As the nation races to build an AI-ready workforce, Native communities must be included. This legislation's focus on workforce training funding, rural broadband access, and higher education partnerships is the kind of investment that ensures AI's benefits reach Indian Country. At NTU, we are preparing the next generation of Diné engineers, data scientists, and technologists. This Act would help us scale that work and make sure Native students have a seat at the table as this technology reshapes the workforce. We urge Congress to move swiftly to pass it," said Elmer Guy, President, Navajo Technical University.

"Diné College views the AI Workforce for Americans Act as a significant opportunity to translate AI workforce policy into education, industry-recognized credentials, employment, entrepreneurship, and economic opportunity for the Navajo Nation-while ensuring that Diné sovereignty, Indigenous knowledge, language, and Tribal data are protected," said Arlando Teller, Director of Legislative & Government Affairs, Diné College.

"Senator Kelly has been thoughtfully wrestling with the concerns that real Americans are facing with the adoption of AI - job displacement, costs, and ensuring that the benefits of this technology don't just accrue to the few. This keeps the focus on ensuring Americans win," said Mieke Eoyang, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy, Visiting Professor, Carnegie Mellon University's Institute for Strategy & Technology, Senior non-resident fellow, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies Institute on America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs.

"Public choices shape how technological revolutions affect society. With artificial intelligence poised to reshape our economy, we urgently need political leaders to come forward with ideas for steering this transformation toward shared prosperity. Senator Kelly advances this vital national conversation at a pivotal moment with proposals to expand opportunity for workers, strengthen career ladders, and help communities adapt and thrive in an increasingly AI-driven economy," said Ramin Toloui, Distinguished Policy Fellow, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.

"In the Make AI Work for Americans Act, Senator Kelly demonstrates a forward-looking plan to help mitigate the adverse impacts of AI adoption on our workforce. Key to this vision is worker empowerment through training, education, and increased AI literacy. The whole country will benefit from the proposed creation of best practices for the safe and responsible integration of AI in the workplace. With this Act, Senator Kelly prioritizes worker support and opportunities by defining a path to stabilization and flourishing," said Kiri Wagstaff, AAAI Fellow and Special Advisor on AI for the OSU Libraries, Oregon State University.

Click here to read the full text of the bill, here for a section-by-section, and here for a one-pager.

See what stakeholders are saying about Make AI Work for Americans Act here.