Trump Signs Executive Order To Combat State AI Regulation

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday intended to limit state regulation of artificial intelligence. In a ceremony in the Oval Office, Trump said AI is a strategic priority for the United States, and that there must be “a central source of approval” for developers.

“When they need approvals on things, they have to come to one source, they can’t go to California, New York, and various other places, like Illinois, with [Illinois Governor] Pritzker, you know, a totally unreasonable person,” he said. “But if they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you could forget it, because it’s not possible to do.”

The White House circulated a version of the executive order last month. The signed version is similar to the draft, giving various responsibilities to agencies including the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the President’s Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, working in concert with various other parts of the executive branch that are concerned with AI policy.

But the final version does contain some key differences, including a carve-out for state child safety laws, certain laws relating to data centers, and state procurement and use of AI.