US President, Donald Trump, has signed an Executive Order aimed at stopping states from introducing laws that limit Artificial Intelligence (AI), setting up a federal taskforce with the “sole responsibility” of challenging such State regulations.
During the signing ceremony on Thursday, Trump highlighted AI companies’ eagerness to “invest” in the United States, arguing that allowing states to enforce different rules would hinder development.
He said: “If they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you could forget it.”
This order revives an effort Republicans attempted earlier in the year to impose a 10-year ban on state-level AI regulation through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
That proposal collapsed after bipartisan opposition and internal party disagreements, with the Senate voting 99-1 to strike it out. Unlike legislation, the new directive does not carry the force of law but signals the administration’s renewed push to centralise AI oversight at the federal level.
Titled “Ensuring a national policy framework for artificial intelligence”, the order marks a win for Silicon Valley companies that have pushed back against state regulation. These firms argue that inconsistent state rules would create unnecessary burdens.
However, neither the administration nor the industry has offered clear plans for addressing the social, environmental or political risks linked to AI, leaving only existing federal standards—less strict than measures some states are adopting.
The order directs the Department of Justice to establish an “AI Litigation Task Force” to challenge state laws and calls for a review of statutes that could “require AI models to alter their truthful outputs”.
States likely to be scrutinised include California, which demands safety disclosures for new AI models, and Colorado, which requires employers to assess risks of algorithmic discrimination.
The directive has drawn criticism from state officials and civil liberties groups, who warn it will consolidate power in the hands of tech corporations and weaken protections for vulnerable communities.
They argued the move could expose more people, including children, to risks associated with chatbots, surveillance systems and algorithmic decision-making.
“Trump’s campaign to threaten, harass and punish states that seek to pass commonsense AI regulations is just another chapter in his playbook to hand over control of one of the most transformative technologies of our time to big tech CEOs,” said Teri Olle, the vice-president of Economic Security California Action. “This is not about allowing for American innovation.”
Trump has positioned federal control of AI regulation as essential to preventing leftist influence in generative AI systems, a stance echoed by conservative tech leaders such as Elon Musk. Speaking at the US-Saudi Investment Forum last month, he said: “You can’t go through 50 states. You have to get one approval. Fifty is a disaster. You’ll have one woke state and you’ll have to do all woke… You’ll have a couple of wokesters and you don’t wanna do that. You wanna get the AI done.”
He repeated the argument on Truth Social earlier this week, writing: “We are beating ALL COUNTRIES at this point in the race, but that won’t last long if we are going to have 50 States, many of them bad actors, involved in RULES and the APPROVAL PROCESS. THERE CAN BE NO DOUBT ABOUT THIS! AI WILL BE DESTROYED IN ITS INFANCY!”
The administration has emphasised its commitment to making the United States the global leader in advanced AI capabilities, reflecting rising competition with China. Yet in pursuing this goal, the White House continues to overlook warnings from researchers and rights advocates about environmental damage, economic risks and the technology’s potential to fuel mental health issues or spread misinformation.
- The Guardian UK