Topline
Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., on Monday night called out President Donald Trump’s stance on regulation of AI safety and accused him of being “compromised” on the issue due to his son Donald Trump Jr.’s venture firm’s investments in several artificial intelligence companies.
Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., attacked the president over his refusal to step in and regulate AI safety.
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Key Facts
During his appearance on MS NOW’s The Last Word, Ossoff told host Lawrence O’Donnell that this was a moment that “calls for wise and capable leadership.”
The Georgia Senator said it was important to have inspectors in Frotier Labs and AI company CEOs should be made to testify before Congress.
Ossoff then criticized the president saying he calling on the government and lawmakers to sit on their hands and “hope for the best.”
The Democrat alleged that Trump had was “conflicted” on the matter because of his son’s venture firm, 1789 Capital’s, investment in AI labs and data centers.
Ossoff said the “First Family has a financial stake in this industry” and because of this he argued the president was “compromised.”
What Did Ossoff Say Earlier About AI Safety Regulation?
Speaking at rally in Georgia on Sunday, Ossoff brought up the warnings of existential risk from AI made by several top AI researchers and executives last week. “What fills us with dread is the crushing weakness of our politics against the massive stakes of our times. Tech titans dig bunkers, while warning us the new intelligence they’re creating risks human extinction. Congress debates youth sports and the president builds a ballroom.”
What Has Trump Said About AI Safety Regulation?
In a Truth Social post on Monday, Trump said warnings that AI could cause human extinction was a “HOAX, no different from RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA — UKRAINE, UKRAINE, UKRAINE — IMPEACHMENT HOAX #1 — IMPEACHMENT HOAX #2,” or other “SCAMS that America was forced to endure.” The president said AI would serve as the “Greatest Economic Development Engine in History” and argued that regulations that AI leaders are calling for would “drive them into oblivion and bankruptcy.” In an earlier post, Trump claimed the latest warnings were a “SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data Centers,” and claimed the only guardrail needed was “a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!”
What Do We Know About Trump Jr.’s VC firm’s AI investments?
Trump Jr. joined 1789 Capital as a partner in November 2024, shortly after his father won the presidential election. At the time, the fund described itself as anti-ESG, a shorthand for investment driven by environmental, social, and governance issues. Reuters reported last year that the venture firm has made significant investments since Trump Jr. came on board, including in Elon Musk’s xAI, which merged with SpaceX earlier this year, and PerplexityAI. 1789 Capital has since made investments in AI infrastructure firm Ayar Labs, AI robotics company Skild AI, and chipmaker GroqAI.
What did President Obama Say About AI Slowdown Push?
In a lengthy post on X, former President Barack Obama wrote that he was “encouraged this week to see the leaders of the frontier labs agree on the need for them to slow down the pace of AI development…But I’m even more encouraged by the growing recognition that how this powerful new technology develops should be at the center of our public debate.” The former president added: “I’m not an AI accelerationist who believes it will lead to some techno-utopia, and I’m not a doomer who thinks it will inevitably lead to humanity’s destruction. But whether this technology results in amazing breakthroughs in medicine, energy and education or unleashes huge economic disruptions, greater inequality, and potential catastrophe will depend on the choices that we make right now – choices that should be made not just by the companies involved, but by all of us.”
further reading
Trump Says Calls For AI Regulation Are A ‘Hoax’—Compares It To Russia, Impeachment ‘Scams’ (Forbes)
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