White House official presses allies to free AI from innovation-killing regulations

White House science and technology advisor Michael Kratsios opened a meeting of G7 tech ministers by urging governments to clear regulatory obstacles to artificial intelligence adoption, warning that sweeping new rule books or outdated oversight frameworks risk slowing the innovation needed to unlock AI-driven productivity.

Kratsios, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy director, spoke Tuesday at the G7 Industry, Digital and Technology Ministers' Meeting in Montréal, Quebec.

"The United States is committed to promoting private-sector-led development of AI systems, applications, and infrastructure, to foster innovation. This primarily requires us to avoid weighing down innovators with undue regulatory burdens," Kratsios said in his remarks.

"However, we also recognize the benefits of AI will not be fully realized by complete de-regulation. Regulatory and non-regulatory policy frameworks that safeguard the public interest while enabling innovation are necessary to earn the public trust in AI technologies that will allow broad deployment and fast adoption."

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The U.S. official told Fox News Digital that the White House wants its allies to build a "trusted AI ecosystem defined by smart, sector-specific regulations tailored to each nation's priorities and designed to accelerate innovation." 

"Together, we can deliver transformative growth, keep critical data secure, and ensure the future of AI is built on freedom and human ingenuity," Kratsios added.

President Donald Trump has put artificial intelligence at the forefront of his administration, appointing David Sacks as his "AI czar" and issuing an executive order in January that rolled back many of the federal government's previous AI safety and oversight policies in an effort to speed deployment - a move critics say could weaken safeguards and increase risks as the technology spreads.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Monday that he will issue a "One Rule" executive order later this week to establish a single national framework for artificial intelligence regulation, arguing that U.S. dominance in the technology will be "destroyed in its infancy" if he doesn't.

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"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!" he said in part. "You can't expect a company to get 50 Approvals every time they want to do something. THAT WILL NEVER WORK!"

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized the notion of stripping states of jurisdiction to regulate AI, arguing on X in November that it amounts to a "subsidy" to Big Tech and would prevent states from "protecting against online censorship of political speech, predatory applications that target children, violations of intellectual property rights and data center intrusions on power/water resources."

"The rise of AI is the most significant economic and cultural shift occurring at the moment; denying the people the ability to channel these technologies in a productive way via self-government constitutes federal government overreach and lets technology companies run wild," DeSantis added. "Not acceptable."