Warner Unveils Discussion Draft of Legislation to Create Innovative Market for Secure Artificial Intelligence Agents

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released a discussion draft of the Artificial Intelligence Access, Gatekeeper Exchange, and Nondiscriminatory Transfer Act ( AI AGENT Act ), legislation that would open up the marketplace for consumer AI agents, built around strong privacy, security, and market fairness protections. An artificial intelligence (AI) agent is a system that can perceive its environment, make decisions, and take actions autonomously or according to preestablished rules in pursuit of a defined goal. AI agents are increasingly used for e-commerce, social media, online personal finance, and travel booking. As AI agents become more integrated into consumers’ digital lives, they will increasingly act as intermediaries between users and the online services they rely on. Without clear rules, dominant technology platforms could restrict or disadvantage competing AI agents, limit consumers’ ability to choose the services that best meet their needs, or steer users toward their own products and platforms. Correspondingly, an approach that can validate trustworthy AI agents increases the safety and security of users and online platforms alike. The AI AGENT Act would establish a federal framework to protect consumer choice, promote fair competition, and ensure AI agents operate in the best interests of the users they represent. “As agentic AI transforms how Americans interact with technology, consumers deserve a real choice in the marketplace – and AI agents must be accountable to the people they serve,” wrote Sen. Warner. “This discussion draft is a major step toward building a clear federal framework that promotes innovation, protects consumers, and ensures the United States continues to lead the world in emerging technology. I am releasing this draft to hear from stakeholders, experts, and the public so we can strengthen the legislation before it is formally introduced.” Specifically, the AI Agent Act would: Establish rights and responsibilities for guaranteed secure access by AI agents to certain large online platforms. Create a Federal Trade Commission registry of trusted, secure AI agents – with a regulatory environment swift enough to approve innovative user services or quickly curtail products that violate consumers’ trust. Require AI agents protect users’ privacy and user data and act transparently in a user’s best interest and in a manner that makes clear to third-party websites and online service providers that an AI agent has valid authorization. Direct NIST to identify technical standards and open protocols to make online services more accessible to AI agents and to ensure consensus-based standards around critical mechanisms like authentication. Protect businesses, users, and online providers from AI agent abuse or misuse. The discussion draft is intended to solicit feedback from stakeholders, experts, and the public before the bill is formally introduced. Sen. Warner is focused on making sure agentic AI is trustworthy and used in a way that protects individuals and safeguards their rights and interests. He also introduced the Augmenting Compatibility and Competition by Enabling Service Switching (ACCESS) Act since 2019 , legislation that anticipated the rise of consumer agents and would allow users to designate a trusted third-party service to manage their privacy and account settings on social media. Warner sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent encouraging the Treasury Department to better understand and develop rules surrounding agentic AI usage across the financial services sector. Read the full text of the discussion draft here . Read the summary here and section by section here . The public is encouraged to submit feedback here . Submitted documents must be in a Microsoft Office or Office-readable file format. ###