Trump signs an executive order to vet top AI models for national security risks

President Donald Trump, left, and Kevin Warsh arrive at a swearing-in ceremony for Warsh as Chairman of the Federal Reserve in the East Room of the White House, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

2026-06-02T17:00:53Z

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on artificial intelligence Tuesday, less than two weeks after postponing a White House ceremony over his concerns that a similar policy could dull America’s edge on AI technology.

The order establishes a framework for the federal government to vet the national security risks of the most advanced AI systems for up to a month before their public release. The government will be able to work with trusted partners “that will have early access to covered frontier models to promote secure innovation and strengthen the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure,” the order says.

It was not immediately clear to what extent the order differed from the one he declined to sign on May 21.

Trump canceled an Oval Office event with tech industry executives last month because he did not like what he saw in the earlier version of the order’s text. “We’re leading China, we’re leading everybody, and I don’t want to do anything that’s going to get in the way of that lead,” Trump told reporters at the time.

That directive was characterized as a voluntary collaboration with participating U.S.-based tech companies, including Anthropic, OpenAI and Google.

MATT O’BRIEN O’Brien covers the business of technology and artificial intelligence for The Associated Press. mailto

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