# Walkinshaw Urges AI Safety Testing

Rep. James Walkinshaw said the next Congress should continue U.S.-China discussions on AI risks and develop safety testing for frontier AI models. He expects AI legislation to proceed through existing House committees rather than a new select committee. For federal technology contractors, this signals possible future attention to AI testing, oversight, and cybersecurity, but the article identifies no enacted requirement, solicitation, award, funding amount, or procurement contact.

- Companies developing or supplying frontier AI systems can assess whether their testing and risk documentation would support potential future oversight; no specific testing standard or deadline is identified.
- Contractors should account for possible AI-related legislative activity in existing House committees when planning federal technology offerings, while treating the proposals as prospective rather than mandatory requirements.
- The article describes U.S.-China dialogue as a policy priority, not a procurement opportunity or funded program.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology
**Topics:** Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity
**Published:** November 06, 2026

### Government Entities
- U.S. Congress (Congress)
- U.S. House of Representatives (House)
- Government of China

### Key Quotes
> Those conversations are “absolutely necessary, and in some ways, our incentives are aligned, right? The Chinese Communist Party doesn’t want rogue AI agents hacking their systems and their water authorities any more than we do, so we have to have that permanent dialogue and reach some agreements,”
> — James Walkinshaw, U.S. Representative

### Sources
- [Ongoing AI dialogue with China is necessary in coming Congress, top tech lawmaker says - Nextgov/FCW](https://www.nextgov.com/artificial-intelligence/2026/11/ongoing-ai-dialogue-china-necessary-coming-congress-top-tech-lawmaker-says/417099) - Nextgov/FCW