Insights

On October 10, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro spoke at the Association of Business Trial Lawyers (ABTL) 52nd Annual Seminar in Carlsbad, California on a panel entitled, “Evidence in the Age of AI: Digital Evidence, Deepfakes and Manipulated Evidence.” Mr. Ferraro joined panelists Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Judge Alison Mackenzie of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, and David Kalat, a digital forensics expert at BRG to discuss how state and federal courts are dealing with the specter of AI-generated evidence. They discussed how jurors and jurists should weigh evidence, use existing rules, and consider expert testimony to determine the admissibility and credibility of evidence. Mr. Ferraro speaks and writes regularly on the legal, litigation, and business risks of AI-generated media, or deepfakes. He also recently testified before the U.S. Senate on the threats deepfakes pose to Americans, particularly U.S. seniors, and he regularly counsels clients on both combatting the dangers of deepfakes and pursuing lawful and ethical uses of AI-generated media.

On October 1, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro moderated the panel “AI Governance Fundamentals: From Zero to One” at the Practicing Law Institute’s (PLI) AI Governance 2026 conference in New York, NY. Mr. Ferraro joined panelists Van Lindberg of Process Mechanics, Matt Samuels of Anthropic, and Audrey Ser of Morgan Stanley to discuss the foundational architecture of AI governance, including the policies, structures, and roles that most organizations need, and practical guidance on how to implement them.  The panel discussed the path to successful AI governance, AI risk classification and tiering methodologies, acceptable use policies, the role of frameworks, and the assessment of human oversight requirements. PLI members may view the panel discussion through the PLI’s website. Mr. Ferraro is a leading authority on AI law and policy and speaks and writes regularly on emerging trends in AI liability, new AI-related laws, regulatory guidance, and best practices for AI deployments.

On July 29, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro testified before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging at the hearing, “The AI Deception Machine: Deepfakes, Chatbots, and the New Frontier of Senior Fraud.” Chairman Sen. Rick Scott of Florida invited Mr. Ferraro, who has been writing, speaking, counseling clients, and developing U.S. government policy related to AI-generated media and deepfakes since 2019, to share his long-standing expertise with the Committee. In his testimony, Mr. Ferraro explained the benefits and dangers, particularly to America’s seniors, of AI-generated media, possible policy responses, and steps all Americans can take to thrive in a world increasingly awash with synthetic media. For more on Mr. Ferraro’s and Crowell’s work with all stakeholders in the artificial intelligence field, please see here.

On June 10, 2026, at the American Intellectual Property Law Association’s 2026 Electronic and Computer Patent Law Summit in Chicago, Senior Counsel Marc V. Richards moderated a panel discussion that included Partner Matthew F. Ferraro on “Minds, Machines and Robots – Law and Ethics of Autonomous Systems.” The panel explored the legal, ethical, and regulatory challenges surrounding autonomous vehicle and AI technologies, including patent litigation and eligibility, copyright and trade secret protection, and AI accountability and ethics.

On June 8, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro joined a panel moderated by Justice Lee Smalley Edmon, Presiding Justice of the California Court of Appeal, and including Judge Wesley Hsu of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and Judge Curtis E. A. Karnow (Ret.), previously of the California Superior Court, on “Deepfakes, Data, and the Courtroom: Finding Truth in Digital Evidence.”  The panel examined how courts may evaluate AI-generated evidence, including applicable rules of evidence and expert admissibility, and whether those rules suffice to resolve disputes about potential deepfakes. The discussion was part of the legal education series In Search of Justice: Uncovering Truth, Tackling Bias, and Streamlining Justice, presented by The Rutter Group and co-sponsored by California Women Judges. It can be viewed here. Mr. Ferraro has spoken and written widely on deepfakes and their impact on courtroom proceedings, including Navigating Deepfakes in Litigation, Arbitration, and Mediation, an article he co-authored for an American Bar Association publication with several Crowell colleagues.

On May 14, 2026, in Detroit, Michigan, Partners Matthew F. Ferraro and Michael K. Atkinson joined a panel discussion at Law Tech Connect at the Xponential 2026 conference, a premier annual global gathering dedicated to the uncrewed systems, robotics, and autonomy industries. Their panel, “Minds and Machines: AI Law and Ethics in Autonomous Systems,” examined novel issues driving artificial intelligence policy debates around military and international regulations, algorithmic accountability, and liability in both defense and commercial applications.

On April 30, 2026, at Crowell’s San Francisco office, Partners Matthew F. Ferraro, Joanna Rosen Forster, and Jennie Wang VonCannon led an in-person discussion with clients on how the legal landscape is changing as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes omnipresent in business. They discussed AI liability in chatbots and generative AI, recent product liability rulings related to social media, new federal and state laws, and practical strategies for managing risks across applications to AI assistants, synthetic media, and employment tools. By popular demand, they updated their presentation and turned into a webinar that they presented on July 1, 2026, which can be viewed on demand.

On April 23, 2026, as part of Crowell’s Government Contractors Navigating a Sea Change (OOPS 2026) Conference, Partners Sharmi Das and Matthew F. Ferraro and Counsel Alexandra Barbee-Garrett discussed evolving artificial intelligence policies under the second Trump administration, supply chain risk determinations and related litigation, and their implications for contractor compliance.

On March 31, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro moderated the panel “The AI Agent Advantage: Defense, Privacy, and the Future of Cybersecurity” at the IAPP Global Summit 2026 conference in Washington, DC. Ferraro was joined on the panel by Joo Chung, founder of PrivStrat LLC and former Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Privacy, Civil Liberties, and Transparency; Carl Hahn, co-founder of Gentic Global Advisors PLLC and Partner at Steptoe; and Geoffrey Schaefer, Vice President, AI Strategy and Governance at Leidos. Ferraro, a former cyber and technology senior official at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, led the panel in a discussion of the transformative impact of AI agents on cybersecurity defense, particularly in the national security and defense sectors, and the practical applications and legal implications of agentic AI.

On March 13, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro presented virtually on “Deepfakes: Risks and Responses” to the Tech Labs program at the Meridian International Center. Ferraro spoke of the risks and possible technical and policy mitigations to synthetic imagery, or deepfakes. Meridian is a nonpartisan center dedicated to empowering leaders to advance the next era of diplomacy, and Tech Labs is an immersive training program designed to strengthen U.S. government policymakers’ ability to engage with emerging technologies that shape national security, economic competitiveness, and global governance. Ferraro is a leading legal expert on the legal implications of deepfakes and synthetic media. He recently co-authored an article on navigating deepfakes in litigation, arbitration, and mediation, and published a book chapter in the ABA Cybersecurity Handbook (4th ed.) on “Dealing with Deepfakes: The Role for Lawyers and Law Firms.”

On February 5, 2026, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro spoke on the panel “AI Regulation Update: Getting Ahead of New U.S. State Laws” at Privado AI’s Bridge Summit 2026 virtual conference. (The discussion can be viewed here.) Ferraro was joined by Jonathan Tam, Tech & AI Partner, at Baker McKenzie. Ferraro, a former cyber and technology senior official at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Tam discussed the evolving state legislative landscape relating to artificial intelligence and what companies need to know to flourish amid growing regulatory complexity.

On December 11, 2025, Partner Matthew F. Ferraro gave a virtual presentation to the New York Technology Innovation 2025 conference on “The State of AI Regulation.” He explained the current state of artificial intelligence regulation at the international, federal, and state levels, and discussed how companies can thrive in an era of varying policies and rapid technological change. Click here to view his presentation.