Ahead of states’ 2026 legislative sessions, Google paid state lawmakers upwards of $2,000 as “gifts” to cover their attendance at a secret all-inclusive summit with “educational” sessions extolling the benefits of artificial intelligence among other policy issues. Lawmakers enjoyed hotel rooms costing up to $500 a night, a party at Wrigley Field, and a chance to rub elbows with company executives and lobbyists, according to public records reviewed by the Lever.

Now, dozens of those same state officials will be weighing legislation on matters like artificial intelligence, data center construction, and online privacy that could boost Google’s profits.

The summit, which took place over three days near the end of October, comes at a time when battles over regulating tech platforms and artificial intelligence have largely shifted to statehouses, as action stalls at the federal level. Google, which boasts one of the country’s largest AI businesses, has spearheaded a multimillion-dollar lobbying blitz to kill related state regulations, most recently targeting an AI safety bill that passed earlier this year in California.