Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey is urging lawmakers to include strong safety and transparency protections in an artificial intelligence regulation bill being negotiated by a legislative panel, saying a final version should require independent evaluations of the most powerful AI models and stronger regulations for companies to report safety incidents to state regulators. “We cannot allow this technology to move faster than our ability to put appropriate safeguards in place, and we can’t let the responsibility for managing these risks rest with technology companies alone,” Healey said in a statement on Friday, adding, “We need strong action on both the state and federal levels.” Her demands follow weeks of red flags from the AI industry that companies are moving too quickly. On Beacon Hill, a six-member conference committee is meeting behind closed doors to reconcile similar AI regulation bills approved by the state House of Representatives and Senate, which call for mandatory audits, safety reviews and limits on data centers that provide energy for AI systems. A Senate version sponsored by state Sen. Barry Finegold, D-Andover, approved as part of a $325 million economic development bill in July, would require independent reviews of catastrophic risks posed by artificial intelligence platforms every 120 days. Healey has also urged Congress and the Trump administration to put federal guardrails on AI development. Congress is considering a bipartisan proposal filed by U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Westford, and others calling for mandating independent auditing and an emergency government-backed “kill switch” for advanced AI models to prevent state-by-state