Tech interests have spent tens of millions of dollars this year on state legislative races alone. Industry advocates say they want to protect innovation from overregulation.

Polls show voters are turning sharply against data centers and several bills to regulate the facilities are advancing in the California Legislature. Utilities and tech companies, meanwhile, are spending millions lobbying state officials.

Google, Meta, ChatGPT and other Silicon Valley firms have been lobbying heavily against the bill, warning it will hurt new tech growth.

Lawmakers in California and elsewhere can no longer take the tech industry's word when their armies of lobbyists make the case that they police themselves and shouldn't be held accountable.

A journalism expert says Assembly Bill 886 would finally give news outlets leverage and force Big Tech to negotiate. A public interest media advocate says the proposal would favor larger outlets and incentivize clickbait.

The California Journalism Preservation Act directs big tech companies to pay publishers a “journalism usage fee” each time they use local news content and sell advertising alongside it. In turn, the bill requires news publishers to invest 70% of the profits from the usage fee in journalism jobs.

Google’s generosity toward San Jose has appeased some critics but has not addressed all concerns over long-term housing affordability.

The annual analysis comes as advocates and some vocal tech workers call on employers to improve equity in the workplace.

Diversity in tech has been an evergreen issue for years in Silicon Valley, but has become even more central as employees begin to speak out.

The Trump era spurred them to collective action. But the work has just begun.