Trump Announces New 'AI Force' Initiative and Plans to Appoint an 'AI Czar'
US President Donald Trump announced the creation of a new "AI Force" body and plans to appoint an "AI Czar", dismissing calls for slowing down development and warning against falling behind China.
US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday the establishment of "AI Force", a new American body dedicated to artificial intelligence, and his intention to appoint an "AI Czar" to lead the initiative. Trump provided few details about the authorities or structure of the new body, but compared it to the Space Force he established during his first term, clarifying that AI oversight should not attempt to slow it down.
The AI Race and Competition with China
"I am establishing the AI Force, similar to the Space Force I created," Trump wrote on his social network. He added that the identity of the person who will lead the field on behalf of the administration will be published "in the near future", and quipped in his characteristic style: "Only people with a high IQ should apply."
The announcement comes at a time when the debate over the pace of artificial intelligence development is heating up once again. Industry executives have recently called for caution and even slowing down the race amid concerns over advanced systems. Trump, by contrast, rejects these calls, arguing that slowing down in the United States could allow China to close the gap in the technological race.
"We are leading China and the rest of the world, and I intend to keep it that way," Trump wrote.
Rethinking the Terminology
In a separate post, Trump questioned whether "Artificial Intelligence" is even the correct term for the technology, suggesting alternatives such as "Superior Intelligence", "Extreme Intelligence" or "Supreme Intelligence".
The move comes just days before Trump's scheduled meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, against the backdrop of competition between the two superpowers for leadership in the field. Meanwhile, the debate within the United States is far from over: a day before Trump's announcement, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a plan to establish a team to handle safety regulation on AI companies in the state, including examining a "kill switch" mechanism for systems that deviate from their intended behavior.
