Jason Poulos

Jason Poulos earned a bachelor's degree from UMass Amherst and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. Poulos's career experience includes working as a research assistant at Harvard University and MIT, as well as designing evaluation frameworks for frontier AI systems.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Jason Poulos is running to represent Massachusetts District 4 in Congress in the Democratic primary on September 1, 2026. As an independent researcher with expertise in artificial intelligence and policy, Jason understands the profound challenges facing workers in the age of automation and economic uncertainty.

AI is displacing millions of workers while creating new forms of inequality. Jason is fighting for four interconnected solutions: Medicare-for-All so healthcare isn't tied to employment in an economy where AI is eliminating jobs, Universal Basic Income to provide financial security when jobs disappear, corporate taxes on automation to ensure companies pay their fair share when they replace workers with machines, and collective bargaining rights to empower workers to negotiate fair terms as technology reshapes their workplaces.

The incumbent has taken over $863,000 from AIPAC, more than $800,000 from the pharmaceutical industry, and over $50,000 from cryptocurrency executives and PACs. The incumbent delivers on these investments: he voted to eliminate IRS reporting requirements for crypto platforms, voted against expanding Medicare drug price negotiation while parroting pharma talking points, and voted for $21.1 billion in military spending to Israel. Jason is not accepting money from corporate PACs, crypto PACs, AIPAC, or DMFI.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Healthcare is a human right — not a benefit your employer can take away. In an economy where AI is eliminating jobs and corporations are cutting costs, tying health insurance to employment makes working families one layoff away from losing coverage. I support Medicare-for-All because no one should have to choose between paying rent and seeing a doctor. The incumbent has taken over $900,000 from pharmaceutical companies and voted against expanding Medicare's ability to negotiate drug prices. I reject corporate PAC money and will fight for a healthcare system that puts patients over pharmaceutical profits.I support Universal Basic Income. When corporations automate jobs and profits flow to shareholders while workers get pink slips, we need a floor beneath everyone's feet. This isn't a handout — it's a dividend from the productivity gains our economy generates. We can fund it by taxing companies that profit from replacing human workers with machines. The incumbent chairs a billionaire-funded PAC pushing policies that benefit tech investors over working families.Corporations are not people. Money is not speech. I support a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and restore democracy. When billionaires and corporate PACs can pour unlimited money into elections, they drown out the voices of working people. I reject contributions from corporate PACs, crypto PACs, AIPAC, and DMFI. My opponent has taken over $930,000 from the Israel lobby and chairs Majority Democrats, a PAC funded by Silicon Valley billionaires working to push the Democratic Party rightward. Massachusetts deserves a representative who answers to voters — not donors.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I work in AI, so I see firsthand how this technology is reshaping the economy. My passion is ensuring working people benefit from these changes rather than being displaced by them. That means Medicare-for-All so healthcare isn't tied to employment, UBI funded by taxing automation profits, and stronger collective bargaining rights.

I'm also driven by ending the corruption that prevents progress on these issues. When the incumbent takes $930,000 from the Israel lobby and $800,000 from pharma, then votes against expanding drug price negotiation and for billions in weapons to Israel, it's clear who he represents. I reject corporate PAC money because I want to be accountable to voters, not donors.

I believe in human rights — here and abroad. That means abolishing ICE, ending military support for Israel's actions in Gaza, and building an economy where everyone has dignity.

Campaign websitePoulos' campaign website stated the following:Healthcare & Economic JusticeMedicare-for-AllHealthcare is a human right. Workers facing layoffs shouldn't have to worry about losing health insurance. It's time for Medicare-for-all.Protecting Workers from AI DisplacementAI threatens millions of jobs. We need bold solutions—UBI, automation taxes, and collective bargaining—to ensure no one is left behind by technological progress.Universal Basic IncomeThe BOOST Act would provide $250/month to every adult. When AI eliminates jobs, UBI provides a floor to stand on—funded by those who profit from automation.Strengthen Collective BargainingWithout unions, workers face automation alone. The Writers Guild won AI protections through collective power. Pass the PRO Act and give every worker a seat at the table.Lower Prescription Drug PricesAmericans pay 2-3x more for drugs than other countries. Medicare must negotiate prices for all medications, not just a handful. No one should die because they can't afford their prescriptions.Cancel Student Debt$1.6 trillion in student debt crushes economic mobility and perpetuates racial wealth inequality. We need to cancel all federal student debt and make public college tuition-free.Affordable HousingWall Street hedge funds are buying up homes and driving up prices. We need federal action to ban hedge funds from purchasing single-family homes and restore housing as a right, not a commodity.Closing the Credit GapWomen and minority entrepreneurs face systematic barriers to capital. We need postal banking, public banks, and stronger fair lending enforcement to ensure every entrepreneur gets a fair shot.Expand Social SecurityA CEO earning $30 million pays the same Social Security tax as someone making $176,100. The Social Security Expansion Act would boost benefits by $2,400/year by making billionaires pay their fair share.Expand Public TransitFor 40 years, 80% of federal transportation funding has gone to highways while transit-dependent communities are left behind. We need fare-free buses, commuter rail expansion, and equal transit funding.Tax JusticeTax BillionairesThe top 0.1% have tripled their share of wealth since the 1970s while paying lower tax rates than working families. It's time for a wealth tax, higher marginal rates, and an end to billionaire tax avoidance.Corporate Taxation on AutomationWhen companies replace workers with robots, they should pay taxes to fund social investment. If a robot takes your job, the company should fund your future.Ending Political CorruptionLifetime Ban on Congressional LobbyingFormer members of Congress multiply their salaries by 1,452% by becoming lobbyists. This revolving door corrupts our democracy. It's time for a lifetime ban.Ban Congressional Stock and Crypto Trading97 members of Congress made over 3,700 trades that conflict with their committee assignments. Zero prosecutions under the STOCK Act. It's time for a total ban on stock and crypto trading.Overturn Citizens UnitedCorporations are not people. Money is not speech. The Supreme Court's Citizens United decision unleashed unlimited corporate money in elections. It's time for a constitutional amendment to restore democracy.Human Rights & JusticeEnd U.S. Support for IsraelEnd all U.S. military aid and weapons transfers to Israel, and pass the Block the Bombs Act. American tax dollars must not fund human rights violations.End Qualified Immunity, Abolish ICE, Defund DHSICE and DHS were created in 2003 in post-9/11 panic. Congress just tripled ICE's budget while refusing to hold agents accountable. These agencies can be unmade.Defending Internet FreedomSection 230 protects free speech online. Congress must defend it.Cut the Pentagon BudgetThe Pentagon budget has passed $1 trillion while failing audits for eight straight years. End the wars, invest in healthcare, housing, and communities.End Warrantless Surveillance Under FISAThe FBI runs hundreds of thousands of warrantless searches of Americans' communications under Section 702. Auchincloss has voted twice to keep that power. The Fourth Amendment requires a warrant.Reproductive FreedomAbortion is health care, and health care is a human right. We need federal protection that makes it legal, accessible and affordable for all, and that shields patients and providers from surveillance and interference.LGBTQ+ RightsLGBTQ+ rights are human rights. I will work to restore the federal protections that were torn up and to pass the Equality Act, so every one of us can live openly, free from fear, as full and equal citizens.Nuclear DisarmamentThe last treaty limiting U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals has expired. I would cosponsor Rep. McGovern's disarmament resolution and his HALT Act to freeze nuclear testing and deployment. Six of Massachusetts's House members have cosponsored the resolution; Auchincloss has not.Tech RegulationA Federal AI AuthorityAI makes life-altering decisions with almost no oversight. A single federal authority would set binding rules, approve high-risk systems before release, and hold companies accountable.Regulating Algorithmic ManagementWorkers are hired, paid, ranked, and fired by software they can't see or contest. We need disclosure, bias audits, a ban on algorithmic wage-setting, and a human in the loop.Regulating AI Data CentersAI data centers threaten to overwhelm our power grid and drive up residential electricity bills. We need federal and state action to protect working families from subsidizing corporate AI infrastructure.Ban Algorithmic Rental PricingRealPage's algorithm controls pricing for 4 million rental units. The DOJ and MA AG Campbell are suing for illegal price-fixing that raises rents 3-7%. We need a total ban.Climate & Animal RightsClimate JusticeThe climate crisis demands transformative federal action. We need the Green New Deal to rapidly transition away from fossil fuels while creating millions of good union jobs and protecting vulnerable communities.End Laboratory Testing on DogsIt's time to end cruel and unnecessary laboratory testing on dogs and invest in humane alternatives.— Jason Poulos' campaign website (August 28, 2026)Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.