Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration has unveiled a groundbreaking initiative that leverages **agentic AI** to dramatically reduce the state’s regulatory burden, marking a significant step in his campaign to streamline government operations and boost economic activity. This project, which is part of his 2022 commitment to cut one-quarter of Virginia’s regulatory structure during his term, has already resulted in the elimination of 26% of state regulations and nearly half of state guidance, saving taxpayers an estimated $1.2 billion annually. The initiative is designed to enhance the efficiency of state governance while fostering economic growth by reducing bureaucratic hurdles.
Youngkin, a term-limited Republican, has signed an executive order to launch a pilot program that employs AI to evaluate the entirety of Virginia’s regulations and official guidance. The AI system’s primary function is to compare existing regulations with statutory requirements to identify redundancies and also to benchmark Virginia’s regulations against those of other states to determine which approaches are more efficient. This comprehensive approach aims to not only cut red tape but also align state regulations with best practices in other jurisdictions.
The AI tool, known as **agentic AI**, differs from typical reactive bots like ChatGPT or Grok in that it can be programmed to pursue goals, make autonomous decisions, and take actions. This advanced form of AI has been demonstrated in real-world applications such as driverless cars, where decisions are made in real-time based on complex data sets. Youngkin’s office emphasized that while AI will provide recommendations, a human will always be involved in the final decision-making process, as mandated by Executive Order 30.
According to Youngkin’s spokesperson, Peter Finocchio, the AI initiative is part of a broader effort to modernize government operations. He noted that the use of this technology will