A gift for giants. Google, Meta and OpenAI lobbied for a federal legal framework

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at replacing state regulations on artificial intelligence with a single nationwide standard. Trump wants the United States to be the world leader in AI.

The president said state AI laws create a confusing set of regulations. He said his decree would create a federal regulatory framework that would take precedence over state regulations. Trump also emphasized that the United States must be ahead of China in the fight for leadership in this field.

White House AI adviser David Sacks said in the Oval Office that thanks to the regulation, the presidential administration will gain tools to oppose the most “burdensome” state regulationsbut will not oppose child safety regulations.

The New York Times noted that the executive order is a victory for tech companies that lobbied against state regulations. As Reuters highlighted, giants such as OpenAI, Google and Meta Platforms are in favor of the federal government, rather than state authorities, regulating this industry.

State government leaders from both parties maintain they need the authority to enact artificial intelligence protectionsespecially given that Congress has so far failed to pass legislation to regulate the tech industry.

According to experts, Thursday's executive order, which was met with broad bipartisan opposition, is likely to be challenged by individual states and consumer groups, which may invoke the argument that only Congress has the power to override state laws, the NYT wrote.

From Washington Natalia Dziurdzińska (PAP)

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