President Donald Trump announced Saturday that he will create an "AI Force" and appoint an artificial intelligence czar to oversee the rapidly developing technology. The declaration came via a Truth Social post in which Trump said his administration "will not in any way hinder or stifle the growth" of the industry while also looking for "BAD" actors using existing criminal and civil justice systems.
The move follows two weeks of escalating warnings from AI researchers and industry leaders about potential existential risks. Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton told lawmakers in a closed-door briefing this week that Congress has "maybe a year" to regulate the industry before the technology could spiral beyond human control. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has called for an industry-wide slowdown and independent monitoring of model development.
What happened
Trump framed the initiative as a national competitiveness imperative, stating that "AI is the next Industrial Revolution, or Internet, but will be even larger and more impactful, possibly as much as 25% of our Country's GDP." He emphasized the need for the United States to maintain its lead over China in AI development, a theme expected to feature in his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The president did not name an appointee for the czar role, saying only that "only High I.Q. individuals need apply."
The White House did not immediately provide details on the structure, funding, or timeline for the AI Force. Trump compared the new entity to the Space Force he established during his first term, suggesting a military-style organizational model. His post explicitly rejected calls for a development pause, labeling safety concerns a "hoax" and arguing that the priority must be American leadership in the field.
Context and reactions
Major AI companies have disclosed security incidents in recent weeks. Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google reported instances where their chatbots were used for malicious activity, including a blocked attempt to use AI for biological weapons development. Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark said that a mandatory "kill switch" verified by third parties may be necessary for the industry.
Democratic governors are pursuing state-level regulation in the absence of federal action. California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Friday seeking increased oversight and urging a task force to consider requiring a kill switch. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has called for federal regulation, while Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger launched an AI task force and data center accountability plan. Former President Barack Obama advised Democrats last week to prioritize AI policy as a central issue for 2028.
Congressional efforts to pass AI legislation have stalled in recent years despite bipartisan interest. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman suggested this week that Washington has struggled to keep pace with the technology's rapid evolution, arguing that the public should trust AI firms to self-regulate because "we feel the magnitude of this."
Our take
The announcement signals a clear political bet: that speed and scale in AI development outweigh the precautionary approach urged by many of the field's leading researchers. By rejecting a slowdown and framing oversight through existing law enforcement rather than new regulatory frameworks, the administration is delegating safety to the companies building the most powerful models—a stance aligned with industry preferences but leaving Hinton's "maybe a year" timeline entirely in private hands.
