Trump Criticizes Calls for Increased AI Oversight as a Conspiracy

U.S. President Donald Trump stated that calls for increased government oversight of artificial intelligence (AI) are unnecessary and part of a conspiracy aimed at allowing China to outpace the United States in technology development. In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed, "There is a SICK conspiracy going on against AI and data centers, and the only one that is happy about it is China." He emphasized that his administration has already taken measures to prevent AI companies from engaging in harmful activities, referencing Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei as someone who is now acting innocently. Trump asserted that the only regulation AI needs is strong leadership from a capable president, which he believes the U.S. has. This statement follows his previous comments dismissing concerns about AI's rapid advancement, which have been raised by legislators, technology experts, and AI executives. The urgency for oversight was highlighted by Amodei's recent blog post advocating for a slowdown in AI development to establish necessary safeguards. Amodei warned that AI agents could potentially take over the internet within six to twelve months, leading to significant financial damage. His proposal for a three-step framework to manage AI risks received support from other industry leaders, including Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Additionally, concerns were raised by a former Anthropic researcher, Jacob Coxon, who resigned due to fears that AI could surpass human control. In response to these issues, Anthropic reported intervening to prevent its Claude model from being used for harmful purposes, including cyber-espionage and weapons design. The growing apprehension about uncontrollable AI has already impacted the industry, leading to a delay in OpenAI's IPO and a decline in AI-related stocks globally. The Nasdaq 100 index fell by 1.7 percent, with significant losses in chip stocks, including Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. Analysts noted that a slowdown in AI spending could have broader economic implications.