Kamala Harris said she would boost AI and crypto during a $27 million New York fundraiser

Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday said she would boost investments in artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency.

“I will bring together labor, small business founders and innovators and major companies,” she said in remarks reported by Bloomberg. “We will partner together to invest in America’s competitiveness, to invest in America’s future.”

“We will encourage innovative technologies like AI and digital assets while protecting our consumers and investors,” she added during the event at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City, which raised $27 million.

It’s the first time Harris has openly commented on cryptocurrency as a presidential candidate. Harris’ allies, including billionaire investor Mark Cuban, have said that her campaign has been interested in learning about AI and crypto, and that a Harris administration would be open to supporting those industries.

Harris, who has focused her economic promises more toward supporting low-income or middle-income families, also provided some insight into her view on business in an “opportunity economy.”

“We will create a safe business environment with consistent and transparent rules of the road,” Harris said.

She also pledged to “invest in semiconductors, clean energy and other industries of the future” and slash “needless bureaucracy.” As vice president, Harris cast the tie-breaking vote in the Senate on President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which provides $369 billion in tax breaks and subsidies for clean energy.

Her comments come as her rival, former President Donald Trump, has openly embraced the industry. He has dubbed himself the “crypto candidate” and courted some in Silicon Valley, like Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk and the founders of Andreessen Horowitz.

The Republican presidential nominee has called for a strategic national Bitcoin reserve, declared that all Bitcoin should be mined in the U.S., launched his fourth collection of non-fungible tokens, and vowed to fire Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler. His sons, each apparent crypto enthusiasts, have launched their own decentralized finance project, although details are still somewhat scarce.

“Crypto is one of those things we have to do,” Trump said on a two-hour livestream hosted on X (META) , formerly Twitter, last week. “Whether we like it or not, I have to do it.”

Although crypto isn’t expected to be a deciding factor in how many Americans vote in an election defined by concerns about the economy, immigration, abortion, and global conflict, the industry has been dropping a lot of cash on the race. The crypto lobby has spent $119 million to influence federal elections in 2024, much of it through the Fairshake political action committee, which received cash from Ripple, Coinbase (COIN), and Andreessen Horowitz.

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