More than 300 AI bills have been introduced in this Congress alone. But one bill just cleared a major hurdle with the kind of bipartisan support that barely exists in Washington anymore.

The CREATE AI Act passed the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee on June 25, 2026, with a 29-0 vote.

What the CREATE AI Act actually does

The bill, formally known as the Creating Resources for Every American to Experiment with Artificial Intelligence Act (H.R. 2385), would permanently establish the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource under the National Science Foundation. In English: it gives researchers, students, and smaller institutions access to the computing power, datasets, and AI models that have traditionally been locked behind Big Tech’s velvet rope.

A pilot version of the NAIRR has been running since January 2024. It has already supported more than 600 research projects and trained over 6,000 students across all 50 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico.

The House bill was introduced on March 26, 2025, by Representatives Jay Obernolte (R-CA) and Don Beyer (D-VA). A companion Senate bill, S. 4441, was reintroduced in April 2026 with backing from Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Todd Young (R-IN), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

The bill establishes a governance structure that allows the NAIRR to accept private donations of cloud computing resources, datasets, and AI models. That means the program can scale without blowing up the federal budget. Federal agencies collaborate with private sector partners to pool resources, while the NSF serves as the institutional anchor.

Why crypto investors should care about an AI bill

There is no mention of cryptocurrency or blockchain anywhere in the CREATE AI Act’s text. Not a single reference to decentralized computing, tokenized resources, or on-chain AI agents.

The 29-0 committee vote signals something broader. Congress is increasingly comfortable with the idea that AI development requires proactive public investment and collaboration.

The competitive landscape and what to watch

The CREATE AI Act is explicitly framed as a competitiveness play. The bill’s proponents argue that permanent NAIRR funding is essential for the US to maintain its edge in the global AI race, particularly against China’s state-backed AI research apparatus.

The bill’s path forward still requires full House and Senate floor votes before reaching the president’s desk. The unanimous committee approval and genuine bipartisan sponsorship in both chambers make this one of the few AI bills with a realistic shot at becoming law.