Everyone but Trump is worried about AI

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: Everyone but President Donald Trump is freaking out about artificial intelligence.

What’s happening? As policymakers and tech CEOs discuss how to put guardrails on AI development, Trump is on a posting spree.

“The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades,” he wrote in a Monday morning post. “There is a SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data Centers, and the only one that is happy about it is China. WHOEVER WINS AI, WINS!”

In a later post, he also claimed that “AI taking over the World, destroying Humanity, and all other things bad, is a HOAX.”

Why is Trump weighing in on this now? Last week, the conversation around superpowerful AI — powerful enough that some researchers warn it could wipe out all of humanity — broke through after Jacob Coxon, an employee at the AI company Anthropic, announced his resignation, citing concerns that AI giants were “gambling with our lives” in a race toward “self-improving superintelligence.”

Since then, lawmakers from both parties, as well as the leaders of top AI companies, have started talking more seriously about slowing down AI development.

Why does he care? It’s not totally clear why Trump is choosing to go to the mat on this issue, but US-China competition is part of it, as is the economy: He’s repeatedly evoked the need to preserve the “golden goose” to explain his support for AI and data centers.

What’s the big picture? Opposition to AI and data centers has become a rare area of bipartisan agreement. As my colleague Dylan Scott reported last month, according to one poll, about 75 percent of Americans strongly oppose the construction of AI data centers near where they live. Politicians from both parties are responding accordingly and racing to voice their opposition.

But Congress isn’t likely to move anytime soon, which means the quickest path to AI regulation runs through the executive branch — and Trump is proclaiming himself gleefully uninterested in taking action.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

It may only be mid-September, but my colleague Allie Volpe recommends you get a jump on your holiday plans now (especially Thanksgiving). You can read her case for planning ahead here, with a gift link. 

Have a great evening, and we’ll see you tomorrow!