Trump announces ‘AI Force’ as debate grows over AI risks and regulation
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Trump announces ‘AI Force’ as debate grows over AI risks and regulation")
US President Donald Trump. Photograph: (AFP)
Trump defended AI growth, announced a new government “AI Force” and rejected calls to slow development, while earlier criticising warnings over the technology’s risks.
US President Donald Trump on Saturday (Sept 20) strongly defended the artificial intelligence industry and data centres, saying he would not allow efforts to weaken or destroy the sector. He also announced plans to create a new government "AI Force" as he pushed back against growing criticism of the technology.
Trump said liberals were seeking the "decimation, or destruction, of AI" and argued that the United States should continue supporting the industry.
"I, as President of the United States, will not stand by and let this happen," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
"We will not in any way hinder or stifle the Growth of this incredible Industry. Rather, we will cherish it, help it, and watch over it, as it grows!"
Trump said the new "AI Force" would be tasked with "looking for BAD" actors. He also said he would soon announce an AI coordinator, or "Czar", without providing further details about the new role.
Trump’s latest defence of AI comes as public concerns grow over the expansion of data centres, which require large amounts of energy to operate. Polls cited in the report show that Americans are largely opposed to allowing such facilities to be built in their communities.
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The US president has also continued to support the technology despite warnings from some AI industry leaders about the pace of development and potential risks from increasingly advanced AI systems.
Jacob Coxon, a former AI researcher who worked at Anthropic before resigning, recently raised concerns about the risks of the technology. He said those developing AI "earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade."
Trump has repeatedly dismissed such warnings as a "hoax". He has also argued that the United States cannot afford to lose the AI race to China and said the only guardrails needed were a "STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!"
Trump also raised the question of whether artificial intelligence was the right name for the technology. In another social media post on Saturday, he suggested three alternatives: superior intelligence, extreme intelligence and supreme intelligence.
“This is a Poll, and I would appreciate everybody voting! Which is the best name for this ever-growing “Revolution?”
Also Read: Russia election: Moscow voting system hit by ‘powerful, continuous’ cyberattacks, says official
Trump criticised calls to slow AI
On September 13, Trump criticised calls for a slowdown in AI development and described those raising such concerns as "negative" forces.
Speaking to reporters during a visit to Ireland, Trump said some critics were raising concerns about developments that he believed would not happen.
"I think you have a lot of negative forces that are bringing it up that shouldn't be bringing it up, and they're bringing up things that won't happen," he said.
Trump also said the US currently had an advantage over China in AI and stressed the importance of maintaining that lead. He made the comments while responding to questions about whether the AI sector should face tighter regulations or slow its development.
Earlier this month, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei proposed a three-part plan aimed at controlling the pace of frontier AI development. He argued that AI systems were becoming capable of helping create more advanced models, raising concerns about how quickly the technology could progress.
