SEC uses AI to identify regulations for potential cuts

The Securities and Exchange Commission is employing artificial intelligence to identify rules and regulations that could potentially be cut, as part of President Donald Trump’s administration’s efforts to limit financial regulators.

SEC staff associated with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have developed an AI tool to analyze the agency’s regulations, flagging thousands for review. According to The Information, citing sources familiar with the work, they are specifically targeting diversity-related rules and regulations that the administration considers unnecessary obstacles for businesses, including certain reporting requirements.

The initiative also includes plans to overhaul the SEC’s Division of Examinations, which ensures companies comply with federal securities law, and to reduce the authority of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which regulates U.S. brokerage firms. Sources indicate DOGE had initially wanted to shut down FINRA but learned it lacked the authority to do so.

Corey Frayer, who served as a senior SEC advisor during President Joe Biden’s administration, criticized the AI approach as inefficient. “You’re creating a bunch of work that will need to be checked by experts, who already have a very good grasp of what all the regulations are,” Frayer told The Information. “So it’s the least efficient deployment of resources I can imagine for an agency that has the job to oversee a $120 trillion capital market.”