About Stephen
Stephen Wu is a shareholder attorney with Silicon Valley Law Group and the practice leader for the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Service Group. In 2026, the Chambers and Partners go-to research firm that ranks lawyers and law firms globally recognized his practice by listing Silicon Valley Law Group as a leading law firm in Silicon Valley in the field of artificial intelligence law.
Stephen Wu is a shareholder with Silicon Valley Law Group in San Jose, California. He advises clients concerning cutting edge information technologies, such as artificial intelligence, automated vehicles (AV), and robotics. Steve began his AI, AV, and robotics practice in 2007, long before ChatGPT burst onto the scene and at a time when other lawyers and law firms did not even consider offering these services.
His work in AI includes counseling clients on the use of agentic, generative, predictive, classifying, automating, and physical AI. He helps clients with transactions, compliance, liability, investigations, crisis management, and information governance regarding these and other information technologies. Also, he counsels clients on risk management and incident response practices for robotics and AV companies concerned with product liability. His information governance work includes establishing data security, privacy, and AI policies, notices, and programs. Steve counsels clients on compliance with AI-specific laws and data protection laws such as state AI-specific laws, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA).
In his litigation practice, Steve represents clients in federal and state court cases and resolves disputes through arbitration and mediation. His typical cases relate to information technology, trade secret, and copyright disputes. In two instances, he represented two vendors of robotics technologies in federal court.
As researchers conduct pioneering work on AI systems that equal or exceed human level intelligence -- artificial general intelligence (AGI) and artificial superintelligence (ASI) -- Steve has served as a thought leader on emerging challenges faced by companies developing the newest and most advanced AI technologies. His programs and written publications starting in 2020 serve to lay the groundwork for a firm and sustainable legal foundation of preparedness for the longer-term future of AI. In 2024, the American Bar Association published his book chapter on this topic called "The Long-Term Future of Law and Artificial Intelligence" in its book entitled "Artificial Intelligence Legal Issues, Policy, and Practical Strategies."
Finally, Steve acts as a part-time or fractional general counsel to Silicon Valley startups and technology companies. In this role, he drafs and negotiates software-as-a-service (SaaS) and AI-as-a-service (AIaaS) agreements, licenses, hardware sales agreements, HIPAA business associate agreements, marketing agreements, and other technology transactions.
Steve served as the 2010-2011 Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Science & Technology Law. He currently serves as Chair of the American Bar Association Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute held in Silicon Valley each October. In 2023, American Bar Association President Mary Smith appointed Steve as an Advisory Committee member of the ABA-wide Task Force on Law and Artificial Intelligence.
He is a member of a number of various American Bar Association Science & Technology Law Section Committees, including the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Internet of Things, Big Data, Information Security, and E-Privacy Law Committees. In 2007, Steve founded the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Committee, the first ABA committee to study the intersection of law and AI/robotics. The American Bar Association published his book, Guide to HIPAA Security and the Law, in August 2016. Steve has written or co-written six other books on information security and the law. In 2019 and 2024, he wrote book chapters for ABA publications on AI and the legal issues of connected vehicle systems. In 2026, Springer published his book chapter on California's regulation of automated driving in the anthology "The Handbook on Assisted and Automated Driving."
Before joining Silicon Valley Law Group, Steve was a Silicon Valley partner at Cooke Kobrick & Wu LLP. Before starting his private practice, was the second in-house attorney at VeriSign, Inc. At VeriSign, he was in charge of the team managing the company’s security policies and procedures (certificate policies and certification practice statements) supporting its secure ecommerce (public key infrastructure) services. Before VeriSign, Steve practiced with two international law firms, Jones Day and the firm now known as K&L Gates, in the areas of intellectual property, commercial, and general litigation, as well as technology licensing and transactions. From 1988 to 1990, Steve served as a law clerk to the Hon. Joseph P. Kinneary, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. He is a 1988 graduate of Harvard Law School (with honors).
Education
J.D., Harvard University
cum laude
B.A., University of Pittsburgh
summa cum laude
Jurisdictions
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
California and New York
Professional Activities
American Bar Association Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute
Founded and led the Institute starting with its first program organized in 2019 and presented in January 2020.
Chair: 2020-2016
American Bar Association Science & Technology Law Section
Member Since: 1997
Chair: 2010-2011
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Committee, ABA Science & Technology Law Section
Founder of the Committee in 2007
Members Since 2007
Information Security Committee, ABA Science & Technology Law Section
Member Since: 1997
Co-Chair: 2001-2004
High Technology Law Section, Santa Clara County Bar Association
Chair: 2014-2015
Volunteer Activities
Steve is an active volunteer in Scouting America. He served as Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 37 in Los Altos, CA, from 2014 to 2017. He served as the founding scoutmaster of Scouts BSA for girls in Los Altos, CA, from 2019 to 2022.
In 2023, the Pacific Skyline Council, Boy Scouts of America bestowed the Distinguished Citizen Award on Steve. This aware recognizes noteworthy and extraordinary leadership of citizens in communities across the US. Honoring distinguished citizenship delivers a message to our youth that character counts. The lives of distinguished citizens put into place guideposts that serve to inspire our youth to lead, to accept responsibility, and to care about principles and causes beyond self-interest.
He is a member of the National Eagle Scout Association and served as an advisor and Vigil member of Ohlone Lodge #63, Order of the Arrow (Scouting's National Honor Society).
Steve headed the Law Merit Badge Program at the 2010 BSA National Jamboree and served on the BSA national merit badge task force.
Representative Clients
About Silicon Valley Law Group
At Silicon Valley Law Group (SVLG) we approach our work in a different way. We begin the process with the end in mind – your business goals. At the onset of each matter, we do a careful analysis and develop a practical strategy that can be implemented as easily as possible. We provide practical solutions for a complex world.
Our clients tell us that our approach is unique. It is instrumental in building the trust that supports our long-term partnerships. The SVLG Way allows us to provide the right answers — fast.