Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks with reporters in Washington on Jan. 29, 2026. 

Bernie Sanders, the Vermont senator and figurehead of the American left, is coming to the Bay Area this month with plans to quiz leaders from the artificial intelligence industry about their nascent, powerful tech.

Sanders has been openly skeptical about the technology’s impact in recent months, dubbing it “revolutionary and transformative” even as he worries about job displacement and pain for the working class. In December, he called for a moratorium on the construction of the data centers that train and run AI. Now, he’s planning a February trip to California to meet and question AI’s leaders, according to a statement shared first with SFGATE on Wednesday.

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“Artificial intelligence and robotics will transform the world,” the senator wrote. “Today, a handful of billionaires in Silicon Valley are making decisions behind closed doors that will shape the........

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