Report from the Wall Street Journal
In Brief – President Trump reiterated his opposition to regulations that could constrain artificial-intelligence development, arguing that responsible practices by the leading AI companies backed up by existing laws and federal authorities can hold bad actors accountable. At a White House lunch with about two dozen technology executives, Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said the CEOs had signed a AI safety statement committing their businesses to internal development controls, external model reviews and board notification of safety events. Trump described the agreement as a morally binding “constitution” and said the administration may create a committee to oversee it. The White House already encourages the companies to voluntarily submit new models for prerelease government safety testing, although critics complain about its voluntary and opaque nature. The administration’s hands-off, pro-growth approach faces increasing public concerns about risks and calls for safeguards from industry officials.
Context – In the face of public anxiety, a vocal cadre of anti-Big Tech conservatives, and a culture of sci-fi AI dystopia, the President is not stepping back from his support for US AI development, and he is clearly committed to pressing industry to back his efforts. The seating chart for the lunch includes nearly every heavyweight. Anthropic’s vocally progressive leadership is clearly seen as troublesome because opposing “Woke AI” is a priority across the Trump orbit. Despite rejecting formal government oversight of AI models, the Administration intervened this spring to temporarily block the release of an advanced Anthropic model, and the Pentagon continues to try to blacklist the company. CEO Dario Amodei’s call for a coordinated slowdown in AI development and an antitrust exemption allowing for safety collaboration received a negative response from across Administration and Republican quarters. However, President Trump sometimes tries to charm perceived opponents and Amodei dined with him in the White House the evening before the big White House industry lunch.