In our last quarterly edition, we warned that the “tech battles won’t slow down in 2026.”
But honestly, even we’ve been a little surprised at how fast they’ve been going.
Don’t worry. Getting you caught up on everything you missed is a specialty of Punchbowl News Tech.
Here’s a rundown on our scoops and most influential reporting this year.
Chips. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast (R-Fla.) has been pushing for legislation to rein in sales of AI chips to China. We’ve led the coverage of Mast’s effort, from when he introduced his AI Overwatch Act to its reception in Congress, by the industry and House GOP leadership.
AI. Just last week, the White House released a federal framework for regulating artificial intelligence. We scooped its pending release, as well as House GOP leadership’s hopes to push it forward this year and the Senate’s plans on the issue.
Since then, we’ve been delving into every aspect of what’s next, from Democratic demands and the ever-present political clock to the committee puzzle.
Kids bills. The House Energy and Commerce Committee approved a series of measures designed to protect kids and teens online and start regulating issues like chatbots.
We were first to report how the panel was packaging the bills, what changes they made and where negotiations had broken down. Then we covered the committee markup — plus some surprise Senate action in the middle of the proceedings — and plotted next steps, including the potential effort to combine kids protection bills with AI policies.
Campaign. Of course, what happens in Congress is a function of who comes to the Hill, which is why campaign spending by AI PACs could easily top $200 million this year.
We’ve gotten deep into the long-term strategy of the pro-AI side, probed the political opportunities and pitfalls for the tighter-regulations crowd and told you about unexpected newcomers getting in on the advocacy game.
Plenty to read to get you ready for the rest of the year.
