Trump signs voluntary executive order on artificial intelligence

June 2 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday requesting that artificial intelligence companies provide AI models to the government for testing before those models are fully released. The "order" is voluntary.

"Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the creation of a mandatory governmental licensing, preclearance or permitting requirement for the development, publication, release or distribution of new AI models, including frontier models," the order said.

A frontier model is the most advanced AI model available at any given time.

It requests that the AI companies take part in a process to study their models' "advanced cyber capabilities" and give the government access up to 30 days before a model's release.

The Hill reported that the order, which was signed privately, appeared to be a scaled-back version of the AI order that Trump originally planned to sign in May. The president did not sign that version after saying he "didn't like certain aspects of it."

That original order asked companies to provide their AI models for testing for 90 days before release. CNBC reported that several tech leaders, including Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, allegedly called Trump to lobby against the original order.

The order also tells officials from certain federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, to develop a process to evaluate AI capabilities and ensure defenses.

This order comes as AI companies Anthropic, OpenAI and SpaceX (which includes SpaceXAI) prepare for initial public offerings soon.

Anthropic drew attention with its reveal earlier this year of Claude Mythos Preview, an AI model that specializes in identifying cybersecurity issues. The reveal was part of Project Glasswing, a cybersecurity initiative that the company also expanded Tuesday.

The company has also clashed with the Trump administration, which ordered federal agencies to stop using Anthropic products and called the company a supply chain risk to national security.

Anthropic has sued the Trump administration to reverse the blacklisting, and that lawsuit is ongoing.