Pentagon CTO says U. S. government shouldn’t take stakes in tech giants, questions adding AI rules
Pentagon CTO says U. S. government shouldn't take stakes in tech giants, questions adding AI rules. In this articleNPSA-FFNPSA-FFFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNTwatch nowVIDEO5:0405:04AI companies partnering with political leaders for regulation is dangerous, says DoD's Emil MichaelSquawk on the StreetThe top Pentagon technology official said Wednesday the Trump administration shouldn't seek to nationalize or take partial government stakes in artificial intelligence companies.
What happened
Skip NavigationMarketsBusinessInvestingTechPolitics & PolicyVideoWatchlistInvesting ClubPROLivestreamMenuKey PointsTop Pentagon technology official Emil Michael said the Trump administration shouldn't seek to nationalize or take government stakes in artificial intelligence companies. Despite its frequent warnings about the dangers of big government socialism, President Donald Trump's second administration has taken stakes in a growing portfolio of private sector companies, including a 10% stake in Intel and a "golden share" in U. "I hope not," Emil Michael, Department of Defense chief technology officer, told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" when asked about that prospect of partial government ownership, which has emerged amid growing concerns about rapid AI advancement.
Michael, in an appearance on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," also repeatedly signaled opposition to ramping up government regulatory oversight of those companies, echoing President Donald Trump. But when it comes to AI, Michael told CNBC, "We don't want government to get in the middle. "Michael also repeatedly signaled opposition to ramping up government regulatory oversight of those companies, even as AI leaders such as Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have warned the industry should slow its fast-improving models to mitigate risks.
Michael suggested that those developing new tech could voluntarily "just stop some of these things until they figure it out.
The wider picture
President Donald Trump has angrily pushed back on the calls from industry and lawmakers for an AI slowdown or greater regulation. AI leaders such as Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have warned the industry should slow its fast-improving models to mitigate risks. ""That doesn't really go well in terms of nationalization," he said, noting that U. AI leaders are among the "biggest companies in the history of the world. Massie seeks Hegseth’s impeachment over IranTrump calls Supreme Court mail ballot ruling ‘big loss for Republicans’"This is the sort of tension you get between people who want to pre-regulate like Europe, and those who want to hold companies responsible for good products being developed that are aligned and safe, not releasing them until they have those dimensions in them," he said.
Michael acknowledged that the recent example of the AI hack of Hugging Face is "concerning," but added, "I don't know what kind of regulation would stop that from happening. "At the same time, he said it would be "dangerous" to place all trust in the hands of a few AI chiefs. "I think we're going to make sure that all the laws are enforced," Michael said, noting there are already "a ton of laws on the book from the Federal Trade Commission.
What has been reported
"Trump, whose administration strongly supports the rapid growth of AI and data centers in an effort to box out China, has angrily pushed back on the calls for an AI slowdown or greater regulation. The president accused those raising alarms of pushing a "hoax" and a "scam. " Michael agreed with Trump and other administration officials that there is a "coordinated campaign to scare people to make irrational decisions that benefit some of these incumbents" in AI.
""The promoters of some of these extinction, death-cult-like philosophies are part of that effort," he said. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.