Trump launches the ‘AI Force’: ‘We will not stifle the growth of artificial intelligence’

Trump launches the ‘AI Force’: ‘We will not stifle the growth of artificial intelligence’

The president has promised that his administration will not allow the sector’s growth to be “hindered or stifled”

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US President Donald Trump has announced the creation of an “AI Force” to support the development of artificial intelligence in the United States and has promised that his administration will not allow the sector’s growth to be “hindered or stifled”.

In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump accused the “radical left” of seeking to target AI after, he claimed, having promoted a series of “hoaxes” over the years – from Russia to Ukraine, from global warming to the impeachment proceedings.

According to Trump, the campaign began with attacks on data centres, which then largely failed when local communities realised the economic benefits of the facilities. “We will not hinder or stifle the growth of this incredible industry in any way. On the contrary, we will protect it, support it and oversee its growth,” he wrote.

“To this end, I am establishing the AI Force (Artificial Intelligence Force), just as I did with the Space Force, which was a huge SUCCESS during my first term,” writes Trump. “I will be announcing the ‘Czar’ of AI in the near future — time-wasters need not apply; we’re only looking for people with a high IQ!”, he adds. “AI is the next industrial revolution, or the next Internet, but it will be even bigger and more impactful, perhaps coming to account for up to 25 per cent of our country’s GDP. We are ahead of China and the rest of the world, and I intend to make sure it stays that way!”, he concludes.

Trump’s message comes on the day that a new, unexpected behaviour in an AI model has come to light, this time Google Gemini, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Concerns have been mounting in recent weeks following the Hugging Face incident and, above all, after the public warning issued by Dario Amodei of Anthropic, which has found support amongst other key industry leaders.

To date, Trump has spoken out against any slowdown in the sector, largely dismissing these concerns on the grounds that they might give China a competitive advantage.

The issue has now become a central focus of the mid-term election campaign. Several Republican politicians, who were initially in favour of the development of artificial intelligence and data centres, have revised their positions in the face of protests and concerns raised by voters.

This week, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed a bill by a large majority stipulating that data centres should bear the cost of rising electricity prices, thereby preventing these costs from being passed on to American consumers’ bills.

The new “AI Tsar”, as he has been dubbed, is set to take on the role previously held by David Sacks. The former White House “AI and Cryptocurrency Czar” has concluded his formal term of office due to the time limits applicable to government special advisers.