Pro-AI Super PAC Network Closes Campaign Chapter After Midterm Elections

A major pro-AI super PAC network is closing its campaign chapter after the midterm elections, leaving behind millions of dollars unspent and a mixed record of success.

Leading the Future, one of the largest pro-AI super PAC networks, has amassed a sizeable war chest of over $100 million since its inception in August 2025. The network's donors include prominent tech billionaires from Silicon Valley, including those affiliated with Andreessen Horowitz, Palantir, and OpenAI.

The network's strategy was to support candidates who share its vision for promoting innovation, but the details reveal a more nuanced picture of its impact on the midterm elections.

Leading the Future has made donations to dozens of successful congressional candidates from both sides of the aisle, but these contributions were largely directed towards safe seats rather than riskier races.

Leading the Future's aggressive campaign tactics were meant to intimidate lawmakers and voters alike, according to Sacha Haworth, executive director of the Tech Oversight Project. The organization had been making headlines for its plans to spend millions on attack ads against primary candidates who didn't align with their views.

One such candidate was Democrat Alex Bores, a former Palantir engineer running in New York's 12th congressional district on an AI safety platform. Despite Leading the Future's efforts, which included millions of dollars in attack ads, Bores' candidacy unexpectedly gained momentum as it became a proxy war between competing AI philosophies.

The pro-AI safety network Public First, backed by Anthropic, jumped into the fray and spent $15 million boosting Bores' chances in the primary election. Although Bores ultimately lost to Micah Lasher, who campaigned on tech accountability and AI safety, his strong showing was a surprise given Leading the Future's initial intentions.

The outcome of the primary has raised questions about the impact of Leading the Future's efforts and whether they achieved their desired outcome of silencing or discrediting certain candidates.

Leading the Future's spending on primaries alone was substantial, totaling around $26 million in independent expenditures.

However, as the general election approached, its spending significantly decreased, dropping to a total of about $10 million. This decline coincided with the network's shift towards supporting candidates in safe races, rather than taking risks on more competitive ones. The strategy seemed to be focused on securing easy wins.

The network's funding also showed a notable decrease, with zero donations reported for both the second and third quarters. This drop-off in support may indicate that Leading the Future's influence was not as strong or widespread as initially thought.

The co-founder of Public First Action, Haworth, described the midterms as an "influence play" aimed at securing safe wins for AI-friendly candidates.

In several key House races, Leading the Future's influence was evident through its backing of Republican candidates via the American Mission super PAC. However, in one notable exception, the group supported Democratic representative Jared Moskowitz's reelection campaign in Florida.

Moskowitz secured his seat by a margin of 13,000 votes against challenger Scott Singer, who had previously served as mayor of Boca Raton. Meanwhile, in North Carolina's 1st congressional district, Leading the Future's support for Republican Laurie Buckhout was matched by Guardrails Alliance's backing of her Democratic opponent, Don Davis.

Buckhout, a retired Army colonel with experience in cyber policy under President Donald Trump, faced off against Davis in the primary. Despite Leading the Future's efforts to sway the election in her favor, Davis emerged victorious. The outcome underscored the complexities of AI safety advocacy and its impact on electoral politics.

In another closely watched contest, Leading the Future supported Aaron Flint, a retired combat veteran and conservative commentator, in Montana's first congressional district. However, his Democratic opponent Sam Forstag secured the win with endorsements from prominent progressives like Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez.

A state-level super PAC in Florida, American Mission Florida, received $3 million in support of Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds. This was part of a larger network, Leading the Future, which aimed to promote AI-friendly policies.

The two candidates took different stances on data center expansion, with Donalds opposing statewide bans or moratoriums. In contrast, his opponent David Jolly seemed to be more open to regulating the industry.

As the midterms come to a close, Silicon Valley is bracing for increased scrutiny and potential regulation, following Democrats' vow to hold Big Tech bosses accountable through Capitol Hill hearings.