Brasilia-Washington Tech Policy Connections

On October 6, Brazil held its municipal elections. Over 150 million citizens--a number that is roughly 40 percent of the population of the US--were eligible to vote for their local leaders. On a national level, the Brazilian legislature is considering regulations to mitigate perceived risks that social media and artificial intelligence pose to the political process. These proposed regulations mark a notable shift towards the European-style approach of technology regulation and an overcaution around technology risks. Currently, Brazil is considering several regulations that would change the technology landscape of the most populous country in Latin America. In 2022, Brazil introduced Bill 2768 to regulate digital platforms, similar to the EU's Digital Markets Act. This bill aims to identify certain companies as "gatekeepers" of the technology industry; however, the threshold is only $14 million in revenue to reach the designation, thereby looping in not only the largest US Big Tech players, but many more US companies, global companies and, ironically, startup unicorns in Brazil that the regulation seeks to aid.