Trump signs executive order to block state AI regulations, including Colorado’s

By JONATHAN J COOPER President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday aimed at blocking states from crafting their own regulations for artificial intelligence saying the burgeoning industry is at pitfall of being stifled by a patchwork of onerous rules while in a battle with Chinese competitors for supremacy Members of Congress from both parties as well as civil liberties and consumer rights groups have pushed for more regulations on AI saying there is not enough oversight for the powerful system But Trump reported reporters in the Oval Office that there s only going to be one winner as nations race to dominate artificial intelligence and China s central cabinet gives its companies a single place to go for regime approvals We have the big commitment coming but if they had to get different approvals from different states you can forget it because it s impossible to do Trump noted The executive order directs the Attorney General to create a new task force to challenge state laws and directs the Commerce Department to draw up a list of problematic regulations It also threatens to restrict funding from a broadband deployment venture and other grant programs to states with AI laws David Sacks a venture capitalist with extensive AI investments who is leading Trump s policies on cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence disclosed the Trump administration would only push back on the bulk onerous examples of state regulation but would not oppose kid safety measures What states have proposed Four states Colorado California Utah and Texas have passed laws that set selected rules for AI across the private sector according to the International Association of Privacy Professionals Those laws include limiting the collection of certain personal information and requiring more transparency from companies The laws are in response to AI that already pervades everyday life The system helps make consequential decisions for Americans including who gets a job interview an apartment lease a home loan and even certain diagnostic care But research has shown that it can make mistakes in those decisions including by prioritizing a particular gender or race States more ambitious AI regulation proposals require private companies to provide transparency and assess the doable risks of discrimination from their AI programs Beyond those more sweeping rules a large number of states have regulated parts of AI barring the use of deepfakes in elections and to create nonconsensual porn for example or putting rules in place around the governing body s own use of AI