Abstract
June 2025. Research Paper. "This paper examines the pervasive influence of Big Tech companies – Meta, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, and Microsoft—and the emergent challenges posed by artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLMs). While contributing to societal good, their unchecked power has led to significant harms, including privacy erosion, mental health issues, algorithmic discrimination, behavioral manipulation, and the undermining of democratic processes. Despite global regulatory efforts, such as the EU's Digital Services Act and AI Act, and some initiatives led by the U.S. government, the industry's self-regulation has proven inadequate, necessitating a more robust oversight model. The paper proposes the establishment of a dedicated Consumer Technology Protection Agency and a new Secretary of Technology cabinet position to provide the comprehensive, expert-driven framework required to safeguard public interest against the industry's escalating societal and economic impacts."