Donald Trump’s meeting with leading technology executives on artificial intelligence will focus on how to encourage innovation while providing appropriate oversight, US House Speaker Mike Johnson has said.
The White House discussion, due to take place on Tuesday, comes as the US considers how far the government should intervene in the development of increasingly capable AI systems, amid concerns about safety, jobs and the power held by major technology companies.
“We do not need a moratorium. We do not need to jump in and hyper-regulate this, because we’ll lose the race to China,” Mr Johnson told Fox Business Network.
He added: “The innovation is important to continue, but we have to strike the right balance. That’s what the conversation is going to be about.”
Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei, OpenAI president Greg Brockman and Nvidia chief Jensen Huang are expected to attend, according to people familiar with the matter.
Google chief executive Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk, an executive at xAI, are also possible attendees.
Mr Trump has played down concerns that the misuse of artificial intelligence could harm people, while stressing the importance of preserving the US’s competitive position against China. He has said safeguards are already in place, including at the Department of Justice.
Mr Johnson said the technology’s development should not be obstructed, while acknowledging that safety measures were necessary.
“I think there may be a role for the DOJ if things go awry. But what we need before we get to that stage is transparency, and we need some oversight,” he said during the Mornings with Fox Business programme.
Democrats and Republicans have questioned the administration’s relatively hands-off approach. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said AI companies themselves were asking for government action.
“So, when it comes to AI safety, it certainly seems to me that we need to actually lean in boldly and responsibly – now,” Mr Jeffries told CNBC.
Mr Trump held dinner with Mr Amodei on Sunday. Anthropic and other leading AI companies, including OpenAI, Google’s DeepMind, Microsoft and xAI, have called for the pace of development to be slowed.
