President Trump has appointed Jay Clayton as the White House’s new artificial intelligence czar, placing the director of national intelligence in charge of a newly announced “Super Intelligence Force”.
Trump said the group would help ensure that “America continues to lead the World in Super Intelligence”. He said it would coordinate the federal government’s engagement with consumers, public interest groups, religious organisations, critical infrastructure providers and technology companies.
Trump prefers the term “super intelligence” to artificial intelligence. He also named Federal Trade Commission chairman Andrew Ferguson, Office of Personnel Management director Scott Kupor and Emil Michael, the under secretary of defence for research and engineering, as members of the group.
Clayton became director of national intelligence earlier this year. Before that, he served as US attorney for the Southern District of New York and chaired the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The appointment comes amid warnings from technology leaders about the risks of rapid AI development, including the possibility that the technology could go rogue. Trump has largely dismissed those concerns and sought to recast the debate around artificial intelligence.
At the White House on Tuesday, Trump met AI executives and later said leaders from several companies had signed a voluntary agreement covering internal and external reviews of their work.
The administration has not set out what Clayton’s appointment will mean for the technology industry. Federal regulation remains limited, with Congress yet to pass legislation broadly governing the development or use of AI, while some states, including California, have introduced transparency requirements.
Clayton described super intelligence as a “national security issue” in an interview last month. He also opposed calls for a pause in development, arguing that other countries were continuing to advance the technology.
“I don’t think any American should think that that’s a good strategy,” he said.
The White House has also launched a redesigned government website which says its material is sourced through artificial intelligence from official government sources.
Trump previously appointed Silicon Valley investor David Sacks as an AI and crypto czar in December 2024. Sacks later stepped down from that role to become co-chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
