‘We're leading China on AI': Trump rejects calls to slow down AI as US races ahead of China

US-based AI companies are seeking contributions to slow down AI development amid growing risks and uncertainty about technology being smarter than humans. Recently, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei shared an essay calling for the AI industry to slow the pace at which frontier models are being improved. 

Several tech leaders, including Elon Musk, OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman, and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, joined the conversation and agreed with the claims. However, US President Donald Trump rejects the call for slowing AI development, arguing that the US must continue advancing the technology to maintain its global lead.

Must read: AI safety warning: Sam Altman, Elon Musk back Anthropic CEO’s call to slow down frontier AI. Why?

Trump rejects AI slowdown

During Trump’s visit to Ireland, he said “You have a lot of very negative forces that are bringing it up that shouldn't be bringing it up, and they're bringing up things that won't happen.” On the ongoing AI doomsday debate, Trump added, “We're leading China on AI... and, frankly, I want to keep it that way because whoever wins AI, wins.”

Trump also acknowledged that guardrails can be put in place, but he argued that “I think you have a lot of negative forces that are bringing it up that shouldn’t be bringing it up, and they’re bringing up things that won’t happen.” This showcases how AI advancements are increasingly becoming a matter of national competition to gain a strategic edge in the global AI race.

AI slowdown and safety concerns

Over the weekend, several industry leaders shared their increasing concern about the risks associated with rapidly developing AI technology. As a result, many leaders are seeking a slower and more cautious approach to building increasingly powerful AI models.

Amodei recently warned that AI could pose several serious risks, including losing control over advanced AI systems, people misusing AI for harmful purposes, and AI being used to assist bioterrorism. He also revealed that it may result in large-scale or potentially catastrophic consequences.

In his post, Amodei wrote, “Over the last few months, I have become convinced that fully addressing the risks requires even more prudence - not just investing in risk prevention, but pacing the rate of capabilities advancement so that risk prevention has time to keep up. We must slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI models. Progress will still seem fast, and we must make wise use of the time we gain. Two things have convinced me.”