Trump’s See-No-Evil AI Policy

N ot long ago , most of Washington was scrambling to be as friendly as possible to the rise of artificial intelligence.

Lawmakers from both parties saw a chance to bolster the nation’s economy—and their campaign coffers.

But rarely has public opinion flipped so quickly and so thoroughly as it has on AI in recent months.

While AI was making some tech leaders unfathomably rich, many Americans in states both red and blue grew alarmed by the proliferation of loud, electricity-guzzling data centers, convinced that AI would first make life more expensive and then, for good measure, eliminate their job.

In the past few days, some of the top voices in the AI industry have gone further , warning that unless development of the technology is slowed, and slowed soon, all of humanity could be made extinct.

These fears have rattled markets and galvanized a bipartisan set of leaders into calling for the government to step in.

AI has now become a central issue in the midterm elections.

But President Trump, who first came to power by closely reading the mood of the country and shifting his views to meet those of the electorate, seems to have his fingers in his ears, ignoring it all and continuing to embrace AI, confident that everything will be fine because he is in charge.

Unless, of course, the human race ends first.

Trump would seem to have a perfect opportunity to try to contain this fast-moving political conflagration: Next week, he’s set to host China’s president , Xi Jinping, at the White House.

The United States and China are the world’s leaders on AI and are in a race to develop the technology.

The summit could be a venue, some in the industry hope, to order a pause in development or establish international safety guidelines.

But Trump, at least for now, wants no part of a slowdown.

AI growth has propped up Wall Street and sectors of the American economy for the duration of his second term, and the president has made clear that he doesn’t want to do anything that could burst that bubble.