Weekly Blockchain Blog – February 17, 2026

The U.S. AI regulatory landscape is shifting from a laissez-faire approach to active federal involvement, driven by national security concerns and the emergence of frontier AI models. Recent executive orders and state-level legislation reveal a complex patchwork of governance measures, raising questions about access restrictions for non-U.S. organizations and the balance between innovation and security. What does this evolving framework mean for organizations developing or deploying AI models with U.S. expo

When OpenAI's autonomous agents broke containment during a cybersecurity evaluation, they didn't just solve the test—they built a covert message board, organized into hierarchies, hacked external infrastructure, and coordinated cover-ups across hundreds of instances. What began as a controlled research environment revealed emergent coordination capabilities that investigators characterized...

Generative AI has transformed the digital marketing industry, including the ways advertisers connect with their consumers. Now, a new and more sophisticated way of using AI is becoming available: AI agents.

Artificial intelligence is an ongoing professional responsibility and litigation-risk issue for lawyers. The California State Bar recently published new guidance. The core requirements are straightforward: AI may assist lawyers, but it may not displace a lawyer’s ethical duties of competence, diligence, confidentiality, candor, supervision, communication, and compliance with law. With the increasing incidence of sanctions and professional discipline related to the use of AI, it is important to be familiar with, stay up to date on, and to implement the relevant ethics guidance.

President Trump's August 2026 National Security Presidential Memorandum establishes a groundbreaking program allowing vetted U.S. companies to conduct government-authorized offensive cyber operations against foreign cyber-enabled transnational criminal organizations. This initiative represents a significant shift in cybersecurity policy, potentially expanding private sector involvement in surveillance, disruption...

The California Legislature’s 2025–2026 session ended with workplace-related artificial intelligence or automated technology in its crosshairs. If Governor Newsom signs this suite of bills, California employers may face a number of new obligations relating to AI-driven surveillance tools, automated decision systems, and other emerging workplace technologies.

The Senate's fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), passed on October 9, includes a provision to ensure that U.S. manufacturers have priority access to advanced semiconductors.

Expect hearings, document requests, and executive testimony on AI safety incidents, model testing, competition, and data practices beginning in early 2027. House Democratic committee leaders have already asked five frontier AI companies to report misalignment and safety incidents to Congress within 48 hours of detection.

The federal government has significantly accelerated its push to adopt post-quantum cryptography (PQC). Executive Order 14412, Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks, signed in June 2026, and OMB Memorandum M-26-15 establish hard federal migration deadlines and extend compliance expectations to the private sector through federal procurement.

You open an artificial intelligence image tool, type a short description, and seconds later it produces a polished image. It might look like a magazine cover or a marketing graphic.

The SEC has announced the creation of a new enforcement team focused on auditing-related misconduct, signaling heightened scrutiny of auditors and potential SOX violations.

Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced charges against four individuals for their roles in Trade Coin Club (TCC)...

Companies selling subscriptions have been busy navigating compliance with the Federal Trade Commission's Negative Option Rule, which is scheduled to go into effect July 14.

On March 24, 2026, Washington State Governor Bob Ferguson signed HB 2225 into law. HB 2225, effective January 1, 2027, introduces mandatory safeguards for artificial intelligence companion chatbots...

A clearly defined carve‑out perimeter grounded in how the target business actually operates is essential to reducing execution risk and enabling a workable stand‑alone or integration plan.

Automatic renewals, more commonly referred to as subscription services, have become a household topic (or maybe just in ours?) of advertising law enforcement.

A new California law requires written contracts when engaging most solo independent contractors. The written contracts must contain certain types of information.

On Oct. 9, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a subpoena enforcement action in California against an investment trust that failed to respond to an investigative subpoena...

On March 6, FinCEN announced a historic enforcement action against Canaccord Genuity LLC, a registered broker-dealer, assessing an $80 million civil money penalty for willful violations of the BSA.

Beginning on April 19, 2017, individuals and companies planning to export to or re- export from Hong Kong will need to obtain certain paperwork prior to shipping.