American AI leaders like OpenAI have pointed to this as justification for advancing their tech quickly without too much regulation or oversight. As OpenAI’s chief global affairs officer Chris Lehane wrote in a LinkedIn post last month, there is a contest between “US-led democratic AI and Communist-led China’s autocratic AI.”
An executive order signed Wednesday by President Donald Trump that bans “woke AI” and AI government contracts could disrupt that balance.
The order calls out diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), calling it “pervasive and destructive” ideology that can “distort the quality and the output.” Specifically, the order refers to information about race or sex, manipulations of racial or sexual representation, critical race theory, transgenderism, unconscious bias, intersectionality, and systemic racism.
BBC reported: The Trump administration has unveiled a sweeping roadmap to develop artificial intelligence, pledging to boost US innovation while stripping away what it calls “bureaucratic red tape” and “ideological bias”.
The 28-page AI Action Plan outlines more than 90 policy actions for the rapidly developing technology that administration officials say can be implemented over the next year.
“We believe we’re in an AI race, and we want the United States to win that race,” Trump administration crypto czar David Sacks told reporters.
The AI plan promises to build data centre infrastructure and promote American technology – but was panned by critics who consider it an ideological flex by the White House.
The plan also calls for federal agencies to review and repeal policies that stand in the way of AI development, and encourage AI in both government and the private sector.
NPR reported: President Donald Trump rolled out a wide-ranging action plan on Wednesday aimed at ensuring the United States dominates the global artificial intelligence industry, signing executive orders that would speed up permits for data centers, finance exports of technology, and end the promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion measures through AI models used by the government.
“We’re going to make this AI industry absolutely the top because right now it’s a beautiful baby that’s born. We have to grow that baby and let that baby thrive. We can’t stop it with politics. We can’t stop it with foolish rules and even stupid rules,” Trump said during a speech to industry luminaries at the Andrew M. Mellon Auditorium.
When he took office in January, Trump moved to roll back former President Joe Biden’s AI strategy, which he said would limit growth in the sector.