AI PACs spent millions influencing 2026 midterms with mixed results

TechCrunch reported that political action committees (PACs) focused on artificial intelligence spent millions of dollars trying to influence the 2026 midterm elections and shape future AI regulation.

Two AI industry PACs, American Mission and Building the Future, spent a combined $4.8 million supporting South Carolina Senate candidate Darline Graham, who ultimately lost her race. American Mission also backed Republican House candidates Aaron Flint in Montana and Laurie Buckhout in North Carolina, both of whom were unsuccessful.

The Democratic spending arm of Leading the Future, Think Big, had more success backing Florida Representative Jared Moskowitz, who won reelection. Meanwhile, groups advocating for stronger AI safeguards also had mixed results.

Public First, backed by Anthropic, supported several Republicans who lost but had better outcomes with Democratic candidates. It also contributed $3 million to a PAC supporting California state Senator Scott Wiener, who was leading his race at the time of reporting.

Guardrails Alliance, which aims to make AI company funding a political liability, spent over $1 million opposing two candidates who lost and $300,000 supporting Angela Gonzales-Torres, who defeated one of those candidates.

TechCrunch noted that it is difficult to isolate the exact impact of AI PAC spending on election outcomes, but political groups are already preparing for the next election cycle.