The United States has thousands of AI governance proposals in motion, and not one of them builds a lasting national framework. That is the argument former Nasdaq CEO Bob Greifeld makes in a July 27 CNBC op-ed, and it maps directly onto a compliance planning problem.

By Greifeld’s tally, states are weighing more than 1,500 AI bills, Congress holds hundreds of proposals, and the executive branch has issued dozens of actions, approaching 2,000 measures in total. His central claim: “Not a single proposal is attempting to establish a durable, comprehensive future-focused regulatory framework.” He proposes a dedicated national AI regulator, modeled on the SEC and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Treat that prescription as one executive’s opinion, not a mandate. But the underlying fragmentation is corroborated. Bloomberg Law reported on July 10 that new 2026 state laws in New York, Virginia, Arizona, Ohio, Illinois, and other states now touch AI, data centers, and privacy.

The friction goes beyond volume. On July 1, the FTC sought comment on a policy statement warning that firms altering AI outputs to satisfy state laws such as Colorado’s could risk violating Section 5 of the FTC Act.

For governance leads, the takeaway is planning, not panic. There is no unifying anchor to design against, and complying with one jurisdiction can create exposure in another. Build multi-year, multi-jurisdiction audit and policy-standardization programs, and do not assume near-term consolidation.

Source: CNBC