6 events in Passaic County with a date

AI could be New Jersey's next big industry

By: Carlos Ivan Merino
and Jack Ramirez
Your Turn
Guest columnists

..... New Jersey is rapidly establishing a reputation for itself in the artificial intelligence revolution, and an independent assessment now recognizes the state as being among a small group of leaders in AI readiness, with the Policies, institutions and technical capacity necessary to move quickly as the technology matures. That success gives lawmakers a clear choice as they close out the lane-duck session: Either build on New Jersey;s AI advantage with pro-innovation policy or undercut it bu rushing through sweeping restrictive rules that would chill investment and experimentation.
..... New Jersey's emerging AI leadership is ahrd to ignore. The state ceratd the NJ AI Hub to bring Princeton Univeirsty, Microsoft, CoreWeave and public partners under one roof, with more than $72 million committed to invest in high-end computing, lab space and training programs. Microsoft then chose the Hub as one of only two places in the world to launch its new Discovery platform for AI-driven scientific research, positioning New Jersey at the center of the next wave of breakthroughs. The state is extending the push into the start-up and innovation economy with a new $20 million NJ AI Hub fund for start-ups, alongside the Next New Jersey Program - AI, which offers up to $500 million in tax credits to eligible AI businesses that invest in New Jersey.
..... Other states are moving in a very different direction. In placers like California, lawmakers have spent the past year [2025] advancing broad, highly prescriptive AI proposals that aim to regulate the mechanics of rapidly evolving technologies and assign new liabilities based on hypothetical doomsday scenarios about what technology could do, rather than how it's actually being used. Those bills may generate headlines, but they also cerate fundamental uncertainty for employers that are trying to sue AI in practical ways today, and they risk pushing the next wave of investment and jobs to other states.

Treat AI as an opportunity while understanding its risks

..... The Garden State does not need to copy that pattern. The state has already demonstrated that it can view AI as an economic opportunity while still taking its risks seriously. instead of rushing to new regulations, we can pass policies that continue to strengthen our innovation economy. S4253 would establish an Artificial intelligence Innovation Partnership, made up of independent nonprofit organizations that aim to advance emerging AI technology businesses and foster supportive, collaborative innovation ecosystems across New Jersey. By routing state support through these on-the-ground nonprofits, the bill would provide AI start-ups and employers with a dedicated ally to help them establish, sustains and scale in New Jersey.
..... How to approach AI regulations will matter most for the little tech companies and smaller employers that make up a significant portion of New Jersey's economy. Large firms operating across multiple states can high big legal teams and develop custom compliance systems. If New Jersey turns AI into a dense web of state-specific mandates and new liabilities, those smaller players will be the first to pull back or to decide that their next phase of growth should happen somewhere else.
..... None of this means New Jersey should ignore real risks. There is a role for targeted guardrails when AI is sued to commit fraud, enable discrimination or cause other concrete harms to people. States are already on the front line of enforcing those protections. Their right move is apply and, where needed, update existing consumer-protection and safety laws so they clearly cover AI-enabled conduct , rather than try9ing to pas sweeping AI laws that dictate how every model is built or trained.
..... The better course is to lean into the model New Jersey has already started: investing in shared infrastructure., backing start-ups and using targeted partnerships.
..... New Jersey has done this before, From Bell Labs to the rise of the state's pharmaceutical and medical technology corridor, we have repeatedly turned scientific breakthroughs into new industries and middle-class careers. Artificial intelligence is the next chapter in that story.
..... Policymakers will decide whether to deepen New Jersey's emerging leadership in AI or to weaken it with heavy-handed regulation.
..... Tye should choose to keep New Jersey's long history of innovation alive by passing legislation that strengthens our AI ecosystem and encourages responsible adoption, instead of trying to freeze this technology in place.

..... Carlos Ivan Merino is the American Innovators Network;s New Jersey Chapter president and Jack Ramirez is the economic policy research analyst at the New Jersey Business & Industry Association.

HOME