New Jersey is at risk of getting artificial intelligence (AI) wrong. As our technological landscape rapidly evolves, we need to center people and dignity – the future of our democracy depends on it.
Many people have become familiar with the use of Large Language Models (LLMs) through their own personal use of Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, and other chatbots. And we’ve watched as companies eagerly inject AI into more of their products, and our newsfeeds fill with AI-generated content.
But AI is also operating in the background of many areas of public life that we do not even see – while going through airport security, applying for a job or a loan, visiting a health center, behind the scenes at police stations, and more. AI affects all of us every single day, whether we realize it or not.
While what counts as AI has come to focus on LLMs like Claude and ChatGPT, the ACLU of New Jersey has long been concerned with the different tools that replace human judgment and decision making in high-risk domains. But the growth of this technology has accelerated at an extremely troubling pace, requiring us to deeply scrutinize all the ways AI has come to impact our rights and freedoms.
As companies profiting from AI usage emphasize its inevitability, its power to transform society, and even the world-ending potential of their own products, we risk losing sight of the real influence AI has today in exacerbating inequality and infringing on our hard-fought civil rights. The impacts of AI are not inevitable, because in a democratic society we have a say in ensuring our rights are protected.
Here in New Jersey, we’ve seen the impact of the rapid, unregulated growth of AI, and we’ve heard how communities have responded.
Over the past few months, New Jersey community members have condemned the usage of government funds to install AI-powered surveillance cameras. Recently, it was reported that Washington Township spent almost $60,000 in opioid settlement money on automated license plate readers from Flock Safety, instead of investing in data-driven resources and services for harm reduction, proven tools to support and empower public health.
Students too have been speaking out against invasive AI-powered surveillance in schools, which perpetuates existing discrimination, disproportionately impacting the lives of lower-income, minority, and LGBTQ+ students. Even though the companies selling this technology promote their products as highly effective safety interventions to protect students, these claims lack independent and unbiased evidence.
New Jersey is also home to more than 80 data centers, with potentially many more dedicated to AI on the way. Across New Jersey, towns have been pushing back against AI expansion, especially because of the devastating impact data centers can have on communities, exploiting resources and disturbing day-to-day life. Last May, a coalition urged New Jersey to temporarily stop the approval and construction of large-scale data centers due to the looming irreversible harms on communities. And just this September, thousands of gallons of diesel fuel from a data center spilled into a tributary of the Hackensack River in Secaucus, prompting advocates to again demand an urgent block to new facilities across the state.
Across issue areas and partisan lines, the people have made their voices clear – they want AI policies that are based on evidence and address the real impact of these tools on people. New Jersey is doing work to meet those needs, but there is much, much more work to do.
As we continue our work to protect and defend the liberties of all New Jerseyans, we’ll be spotlighting how AI intersects with different civil rights issues, so you can understand how unchecked technological growth threatens our fundamental freedoms.
The subject of AI and its societal and ethical impacts can feel overwhelming. It can feel like a certainty that is changing quicker than we can keep up with. But that’s why we’re slowing down and breaking down some of the critical issues impacting New Jerseyans – and people nationwide – so we can better understand the country we’re living in and empower each other to make decisions that align with our values.