Petition for Rulemaking of Andrew Gonzalez
Please take notice that the Federal Trade Commission ("Commission") received a petition for rulemaking from Andrew Gonzalez and has published that petition online at https://www.regulations.gov. The Commission invites written comments concerning the petition. Publication of this petition is pursuant to the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure and does not affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.
What this rule actually says
Right now, this isn't a rule at all—it's a *petition* asking the FTC to create one. Andrew Gonzalez submitted a request for the FTC to regulate something AI-related, and the FTC has posted it publicly to take comments. Until the FTC actually proposes and finalizes a rule, nothing here is legally binding.
Who it applies to
Since the full text of the petition isn't publicly available yet, the exact scope is unclear. However, based on FTC pattern-matching:
- US-based founders: The FTC only regulates US commerce, so this would primarily affect companies serving US users.
- Likely triggers (educated guess based on recent FTC focus):
- AI systems that collect or use personal data about individuals
- Automated decision-making tools (hiring assistants, medical assessments)
- Any AI product making claims about accuracy, safety, or performance
- Likely in scope: Customer data, employee data, health information, financial information
- Likely out of scope: Purely internal business analytics; synthetic/anonymized data; AI systems used only by your team
What founders need to do
- Check the actual petition (1-2 hours): Visit https://www.regulations.gov and search for "Andrew Gonzalez" to read the full petition. This determines what you actually need to worry about.
- Monitor, don't panic yet (ongoing, 5 min/month): The FTC is in the *comment period*. This could take 6–18 months to become a real rule, or it might go nowhere. Set a calendar reminder to check on this in Q3 2026.
- Document your data practices now (3-5 days): Regardless of this petition, write down: what user data you collect, how you store it, who can access it, how long you keep it. This prep work helps with any regulation and most SaaS best practices anyway.
- Plan for disclosure (1-2 days once rule finalizes): If a rule passes, expect to explain how your AI works and what data it uses. Start drafting honest language now about your system's limitations and what information it needs.
Bottom line
Monitor this, but don't act yet—it's still a petition, not a rule, and the details matter more than the headline.