New York opens a state AI testing centre and a registration portal for frontier labs

On 10 November 2026 New York Governor Kathy Hochul launched the New York Center for AI Responsibility and Research (NYCAIRR), based at SUNY’s Binghamton University, and opened a registration portal for frontier AI companies under the state’s RAISE Act.

The centre

• More than 80 researchers from institutions across the state will independently test advanced AI systems, do foundational safety research and train AI-safety specialists, using computing power from the state’s Empire AI initiative.
• Interim co-directors are Greg Morrisett (Cornell Tech) and Jeannette Wing (Columbia University).
• POLITICO reports funding of a $30 million gift from Bloomberg co-founder Tom Secunda plus $25 million from SUNY and the state.
• The centre will help the new state office DIGIT review the safety frameworks companies publish.

The law

The RAISE Act takes effect on 1 January 2027. According to TechCrunch, “large frontier developers” — companies with more than $500 million in annual revenue, such as OpenAI and Anthropic — must register by that date, publish safety frameworks, report critical safety incidents within 72 hours and issue model transparency reports. Fines can reach $1 million for a first violation and $3 million for later ones.

A caveat

POLITICO notes that researchers will work with publicly available information; companies’ internal models under development remain private, which limits what the state can see.