【By Observer Net, Zhang Jingjuan】Global artificial intelligence is entering a critical phase of competition and regulation. Faced with the increasing number of AI regulations in U.S. states, President Trump has become anxious.

On November 18 local time, Trump posted on his self-created social platform "Truth Social" (True Social), calling for federal standards for AI regulation, stating that if not acted soon, China will "easily overtake us".

He stated that the United States must have a federal standard for regulating artificial intelligence. If each state in the United States proposes its own standard, this technology may be over-regulated.

"Excessive regulation by states is threatening this growth engine. Some states even attempt to embed 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' (DEI) ideology into artificial intelligence models, giving rise to so-called 'awakened AI'. (Do you remember 'Black George Washington')?" Trump wrote.

Last year, an image generated by Google's chatbot Gemini depicted the "Father of the Nation", George Washington, as a black man with a white wig, wearing an army uniform. Some users, including Musk, believed its image generation function was "infected by an awakened virus".

Trump emphasized, "We must have a federal standard, not one made up of the regulatory systems of 50 states." He claimed, "If we do not do this, China will easily overtake us in the AI competition."

A 2025 mid-year report from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) stated that a total of more than 260 AI-related bills were proposed across all 50 states and territories, with 22 signed into law, and about 50 expected to enter final review by the end of the year.

Trump's post did not provide details of the proposed federal standard. However, he gave two options: either include the federal standard in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), or advance it through a separate bill. The NDAA is a bill passed annually by the U.S. Congress to authorize the defense budget and military personnel size, as well as determine defense policy and priorities. It often becomes a legislative vehicle for carrying various other policy measures.

Local time November 18, 2025, Washington, USA, Trump at the White House. IC photo

The report said that shortly after taking office for his second term in January, Trump ordered the development of an artificial intelligence action plan to make "the United States the capital of the world's artificial intelligence" and reduce regulatory obstacles for its rapid expansion.

According to a report by Bloomberg, sources revealed that in recent weeks, White House officials have repeatedly communicated directly with members of Congress to fully promote the implementation of the principle of federal regulatory priority. Previously, leading artificial intelligence companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic have consistently supported a federal-level framework to regulate artificial intelligence, rather than having each state legislate independently.

CEO of NVIDIA Huang Renxun also publicly expressed a similar view. He believes that regulations aimed at adding "safety valves" for AI in states have evolved into heavy shackles that hinder the pace of American innovation. China's concise and efficient regulatory system gives it a certain advantage in the global AI competition, saying "China will win the AI competition".

Earlier this week, Steve Scalise, the majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives and a Republican from Louisiana, told the media that the Republicans are "considering" including relevant provisions in the NDAA.

In July this year, the Senate rejected a proposal to include such provisions in the budget bill. Opponents said that this move could hinder the implementation of child safety and copyright protection measures related to this emerging technology. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, recently signed a bill requiring large artificial intelligence companies to disclose their security protocols.

According to sources, the current draft of the bill includes a provision: if artificial intelligence companies comply with federal standards regarding transparency and child safety, they can obtain a state law exemption for up to five years.

In recent years, the rapid development of AI has brought many challenges in terms of data security, user privacy, and market order, while improving efficiency. At the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference, the 2024 Nobel Prize winner in Physics and known as the "father of AI," Geoffrey Hinton, used the metaphor of "raising a tiger" to describe the relationship between humans and AI, reminding people of the risk of AI getting out of control.

Professor Xue Lan, Dean of the Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University, and Director of the Institute for International Governance of Artificial Intelligence at Tsinghua University, recently emphasized that even if the possibility of AI getting out of control seems low in numerical terms, human society must never take the侥幸 attitude of "trying it out." "Once the system gets out of control, the consequences may be irreversible, and a cautious governance strategy must be adopted."

This article is an exclusive article of Observer Net. Without permission, it cannot be reprinted.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7574270284681773578/

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