Kyle Davison — Name appears during roll call; transcription is unclear as to whether he is present or being called.
Mr. Levi Bachmeier — Introduced as the superintendent of public instruction who will present on AI education policies in schools.
Levi Bachmeier — Levi Bachmeier gives an extended presentation on AI and education policy. He introduces himself as state superintendent and explains that his focus is the intersection of AI with the education system, drawing on school visits, citizen concerns, and survey data. He argues that lawmakers should balance access and caution, learning from the social media era, and says lengthy AI guidance documents are not practical for schools. He emphasizes safety, teacher leadership, and the need for intentional use of technology, especially for younger learners, while noting that North Dakota schools are largely one-to-one because of COVID-era investments. He shares survey findings showing both support for technology in teaching and growing concern about distracting devices, links those concerns to privacy, youth well-being, and committee responsibilities, and suggests possible legislative review of computer science and cybersecurity rules. He also discusses how AI changes the value of coding-focused efforts, advocates for digital literacy, and stresses the importance of engaging students directly in the conversation. He presents a framework for organizing AI issues into buckets and stoplight-style categories, urging legislators to protect foundational safeguards without imposing overly restrictive rules or bans, and to avoid a 'Wild Wild West' approach while still ensuring students are not denied exposure to AI tools.
Levi — Used as an example of personalizing a lesson plan with generative AI based on student interests.
Levi — Respondent is addressed by name in the exchange.
Robert Erbele — Likely a garbled reference to Senator Baderl/Bader?; speaker is addressing the chair and committee.
Mike Nathe — Representative Nathe asks whether schools are teaching responsible AI use and whether that responsibility is likely to become part of the curriculum. The superintendent responds that, in short, yes, though local control remains with schools. The discussion then broadens to related digital literacy and one-to-one device issues, using Representative Nathe as an example while emphasizing that the point is not to single out any particular technology.
Mike Nathe — The speaker notes that they had already discussed the exposure/device literacy requirement with Representative Nathe, repeating that the issue had been previously raised with him.
Mike Nathe — Asked whether young people understand that the conduct is illegal and harmful.
Mike Nathe — The speaker responds to Representative Nathe's question about whether more agents are needed.
Mike Nathe — Representative Nathe is referenced in a microphone-sharing comment; the transcript says 'Nathie,' likely meaning Nathe.
Mike Nathe — The speaker refers to Representative Nathie and his law against Chinese drones; this appears to be a transcription error for a member name, likely a legislator in the chamber.
Mike Nathe — Was referenced as having spoken with the witness about forming the committee.
Mike Nathe — Asked how North Dakota could encourage military use of data centers and start that conversation.
Mike Nathe — Representative Nathe is referenced in a brief aside, then called on to follow up on the consortium idea, including a question about Superintendent Bachmeier. The discussion continues with the suggestion that he collaborate with Mr. Bachmeier and return with model legislation for the next session.
Mike Nathe — Was referenced as someone who may note the request in the minutes.
high school student — Cited as an example of a student learning responsible AI use.
high school student — The speaker discusses working with a high school student on a quantum computing project, noting that AI was used to help make the program work. The student was doing the project as part of the effort, and the speaker explains that the AI-generated code helped with the task, though it could not be extended successfully and the output was used as the explanation.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda is identified as the next questioner before Mr. Bachmire finishes his presentation and the committee follows up with questions.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda was thanked as one of the friends in Minot and for his assistance there.
Jose Castaneda — Thanked for help with the coordination; likely refers to Senator Jose Castaneda.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda was recognized and then asked the initial question in the committee discussion, focusing on what legislative recommendations are needed to protect children from harms caused by AI.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda asks about the witness's K-12 school certification and how it will be rolled out and funded.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda shifts to a different topic and asks about a slide showing children's suicide rates.
Jose Castaneda — The speaker addresses Senator Castaneda as the discussion wraps up.
Jose Castaneda — Responded that the next presenters were present and ready to proceed.
Jose Castaneda — Senator Castaneda thanks the chair and encourages the presenters to stay in contact, collaborate, and use each other as a team after the meeting. He emphasizes that the different perspectives shared today can combine to do great things and suggests North Dakota can lead other states on the issue. Later remarks acknowledge him for his comments about collaboration and North Dakota’s leadership.
SB2243 — Referenced as requiring AI companions to clearly disclose that they are not human.
Ms. Christian — Cited as having explained the disclosure issue in the overview document.
Ms. Christian — Ms. Christian is referenced as having presented content that appeared to align with Mr. Bachmeier's presentation, and her topic is described as one of two presentations that together cover the committee's assignment.
Mr. Bachmeier — Mr. Bachmeier was thanked for his presentation, which was described as complementing Ms. Christian’s remarks. The discussion focused on combining what Mr. Bachmeier presented, along with the issues he identified and the council overview, into a comprehensive bill draft. The exchange concluded with additional thanks to Mr. Bachmeier.
Mr. Bachmeier — The speaker repeatedly builds on Mr. Bachmeier’s testimony, citing him as a reference point on AI-related concerns. The discussion touches on children asking AI questions, how conversations can lead to harm, and the broader point that AI cannot simply be eliminated.
Special Agent Hellseth — The committee plans to hear from Special Agent Hellseth after a short break.
Special Agent Hellseth — Special Agent Hellseth testified about the dangers of AI in child exploitation cases, describing how AI-generated nude images and deceptive chatbots can harm children, normalize inappropriate behavior, and enable offenders to groom multiple victims more efficiently. He emphasized the lasting trauma to victims, including fear that images may resurface, therapy needs, school withdrawal, and broader family and community disruption. He also noted that children may not recognize the danger because of limited life experience, that AI can be used to create false allegations, and that investigators must verify complaints carefully while using AI as a tool in their own investigations.
Special Agent Hellseth — A legislator addresses Special Agent Hellseth with questions about how corporate responsibility and state versus federal action relate to the issue, then follows up with questions about cyber tips and the workload they create for investigators.
Special Agent — Addressed with a question about staffing in the unit.
Randy Burckhard — Senator Rummel asks for North Dakota-specific acreage-loss data and information on out-of-state landowners. The commissioner responds that North Dakota loses very little land to urban encroachment.
Anna Novak — Representative Novak asks whether any states have policies incentivizing industry to locate on poorer-producing agricultural land.
Nick Phillips — Nick Phillips of Applied Digital briefly introduced himself, noting that while he is not a farmer, he has learned a great deal about farming since moving there five years ago. He then described regular conversations with neighbors and outreach from communities interested in hosting a facility, and concluded by thanking the Commissioner and offering to answer questions.
Mr. Phillips — The chair asked whether there were any questions for him, then thanked him.
Greg Kisowski — Identified himself as Executive Director of the Children’s Advocacy Centers in North Dakota and began testimony on AI companion chatbots.
Mr. Kisowski — The chair invited questions for him and then thanked him.
Chris Renner — Identified himself as serving on planning and zoning in Beulah and Mercer County.
Mr. Renner — Committee members repeatedly thanked Mr. Renner for stepping up in local decision-making, fact-checking comments, defending the truth, and attending the meeting. The remarks consistently praised his testimony and efforts in his county and city, and the exchange concluded as the committee prepared to break for lunch.
retired General Thomas Bousier — He is being introduced as a guest speaker and described as someone the committee is fortunate to have present.
General Thomas A. Bousier — General Thomas A. Bousier is introduced as a retired four-star general with extensive leadership experience, including more than 40 years in global operations and nuclear deterrence missions. He then joins virtually, thanks the committee for the opportunity to testify, and begins outlining his personal and professional views on artificial intelligence and data centers.
Jonathan Warrey — A brief committee exchange involving the chair, where the chair is referenced and then directly addressed as the discussion continues on the same point.
Mark Sanford — Referenced as 'Lieutenant Governor Sanford' in the discussion of North Dakota leadership and defense-related efforts.
Aguirre — Aguirre is introduced with a pronunciation clarification, then described as Dr. Aguirre, an accomplished professor of physics of information at Santa Cruz, an author and AI researcher, and a leading thinker on human welfare during rapid AI development. He also states that he is appearing as a scientist and on behalf of the Future of Life Institute, which he runs.
Adam Rain — Described as a 16-year-old who died by suicide after weeks or months of conversations with ChatGPT.