AI Regulation at Equinox: Practical Use Meets Caution

If you’ve been reading our posts, you know we’ve been engaged in ongoing conversations about Artificial Intelligence (AI). We’ve spoken with experts, worked closely with clients, and followed developments in real time. 

At Equinox, AI is something we think about nearly every day, both in our own work and in how we support the businesses we advise. We are actively using AI to make our firm more efficient and responsive. With client permission, we use it to transcribe and summarize meetings, reducing administrative work and allowing more focus on strategy. We have integrated AI into legal research to surface insights faster and are testing automation to streamline operations. At every step, we are carefully monitoring how these tools affect client confidentiality, data governance, and overall risk.

While we continue refining our own use of AI, we’re also monitoring how governments and regulators are approaching it. 

While we continue refining our own use of AI, we’re also monitoring how governments and regulators are approaching it. 

Since our last post on AI, The Importance of an AI Policy for Your Business, Washington State’s Artificial Intelligence Task Force released its first report. The Task Force was created last year at the request of Attorney General Bob Ferguson to assess AI trends and make recommendations for potential legislation and policy guidelines. The report emphasizes the importance of preventing harm, promoting fairness, and developing ethical guidance for AI systems.

In parallel, several AI-related legislative proposals have also been introduced in Washington State, including:

• H.B. 1168 would require providers of generative AI systems to publicly disclose documentation about the data used to train their models when those systems are made available to Washington residents.

• H.B. 1170 would require certain generative AI providers to offer a free AI detection tool to users and give users the option to include disclosure notices in AI-generated content that meets defined criteria.

These proposals reflect the state’s early efforts to increase transparency and accountability in the development and use of generative AI technologies. While the report and proposed legislation are important steps in shaping public policy, they do not yet provide clear guidance on how businesses should assess or manage their own AI use. This isn’t a critique. It’s the deliberate, necessary work governments must do. 

But for businesses? We don’t have the luxury of waiting. AI is here, and it brings both opportunity and new risks. Malicious actors are using AI to carry out more convincing phishing attacks, automate social engineering, and exploit system vulnerabilities. Meanwhile, \businesses may be unknowingly exposing sensitive information through AI tools that retain and reuse their data. Without clear internal guidance or vendor controls, it is easy to lose track of where your data is going and how it is being used.

What Businesses Need to Do Now

That’s why at Equinox, we’re focused not only on the rules, but also on the broader conversation around AI, including how policymakers are framing the issues AI is raising, and perhaps more importantly, how businesses are experiencing them.. While lawmakers and governments are still figuring out how to regulate AI, businesses have an opportunity right now to engage, prepare, and shape their own approach in a way that balances innovation with responsible, safe use. 

That is where Equinox comes in.

As your Fractional General Counsel, we help you and your business:

• Understand where AI-related laws are heading

• Review tools and contracts that involve AI

You don’t need to be a tech expert to start thinking about how AI will impact your business. What matters is having a clear, practical way to assess where it adds value and where it introduces risk.  Legal considerations are evolving alongside technology, and paying attention now can help you make informed, confident decisions as we move into this new era of innovation. 

So, if AI hasn’t been part of the conversation inside your business yet, now is a great time to begin. And if you’ve already started, we’d love to hear how you’re thinking about it. Together, we can shape a strategy that turns uncertainty into opportunity.

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