The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is embracing artificial intelligence and automation to tackle its growing oversight responsibilities, according to Chairman Mike Selig's congressional testimony, despite a significant decline in the agency's workforce under President Donald Trump's administration. Approximately a quarter of the CFTC's staff has departed since 2025, due to Trump's demands for federal workforce reductions.
However, the CFTC is also being tasked with regulating the rapidly expanding cryptocurrency and prediction markets. Selig stated that AI tools, such as Microsoft's Copilot, are being utilized to enhance surveillance and investigations, and that the agency is operating more efficiently despite staffing cuts.
The CFTC is prioritizing enforcement, with a focus on digital assets and prediction markets, where numerous investigations are ongoing. The agency is seeking to establish a central role in overseeing non-securities crypto trading and is claiming jurisdiction over prediction markets, which have grown significantly in recent years. Selig's predecessor had argued that the agency required more resources to effectively oversee these markets, and lawmakers have expressed concerns about the agency's ability to cope with its expanding responsibilities.
The CFTC is pursuing rulemaking to establish guardrails for US prediction markets and is pushing policy initiatives in crypto, with Selig asserting that the agency will not slow down its rulemaking process despite being understaffed.