Trump Signs Updated Executive Order on AI Oversight in Response to Industry Feedback

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump enacted an executive order designed to enable government evaluation of major AI models before they are made public.

The order encourages specific AI companies to voluntarily submit their new models to the government for review or assessment 30 days ahead of consumer launch. An earlier draft suggested a voluntary review period of up to 90 days; however, industry representatives lobbied for a timeframe closer to two weeks.

Initially, Trump planned to sign the more stringent version of the order in late May but delayed it due to industry opposition, including feedback from venture capitalist and former White House AI advisor David Sacks. The president indicated a desire to avoid hindering AI firms in their competition against China.

“Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the creation of a mandatory governmental licensing, preclearance, or permitting requirement for the development, publication, release, or distribution of new AI models, including frontier models,” the order states, which was released on Tuesday.

Although Trump had intended to sign the executive order in front of leading Silicon Valley CEOs, he ultimately signed the current version privately.

In addition to the voluntary government review for AI models, the executive order directs the Department of Justice to prioritize crimes like AI-assisted hacking and unauthorized access.

This marks Trump’s second executive order on AI; last December, he signed a directive aimed at establishing a “one rulebook,” or a national framework for AI policy, to override state-level AI regulations.