Trump says he will form an 'AI Force' and name an AI czar, while calling AI-safety fears a 'hoax'
In a Truth Social post on Saturday Sept 19, 2026, President Trump said he would form an "AI Force", "much like I did Space Force", and soon name an AI czar ("Only High I.Q. individuals need apply!"). He said the government would "not in any way hinder or stifle" the industry and would police "BAD" behavior through existing criminal and civil law. He again called AI-risk fears a hoax.
Key facts
- 'I am forming the AI Force, much like I did Space Force, which has been a tremendous SUCCESS, in my First Term'
- 'I will be announcing, in the near future, the AI "Czar" — Only High I.Q. individuals need apply!'
- 'We will not in any way hinder or stifle the Growth of this incredible Industry'; 'BAD' behavior to be handled by 'our already existing Criminal and Civil Justice System'
- No details on the AI Force's role, budget or place in government (CNN/NBC)
- The previous AI and crypto czar, David Sacks, stepped down in March 2026 and chairs PCAST
- Semafor (Sept 22): Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emerging as frontrunner for czar; other names include OSTP Director Michael Kratsios and OPM Director Scott Kupor
What happened
With lab leaders calling for a slowdown and agent incidents piling up, Trump answered with a promise of a new AI structure and czar, not new rules. Three days later he told the UN the US rejects global AI control.
Why it matters
It set the administration's line for the month: institutions and personnel, no new binding safety law. The czar pick (Bessent was reported as frontrunner; he had blamed OpenAI management for the Hugging Face incident) would shape US AI policy.
Caveat: the Semafor czar report relies on anonymous sources; no appointment had been announced by Sept 29.
Changelog
- 2026-09-29: created (sweep 2026-09-29)
Related events
- Trump at the UN General Assembly 'totally rejects' any global scheme to control AI and renames it 'super intelligence' ★★★★
- Trump hosts AI and tech CEOs at a White House lunch on AI oversight ★★★★
- Dario Amodei publishes "We Must Pace the Frontier", calling for a deliberate slowdown ★★★★
Sources (5)
- pressBloomberg: Trump to name AI czar while rejecting safety risks as a hoax
- pressNBC News: Trump says he's creating an AI force and appointing a czar
- pressCNN: Trump vows to create 'AI Force' and appoint czar
- pressAxios: Trump wants a new AI czar and an 'AI Force' modeled on Space Force
- pressSemafor: Bessent eyed for Trump's AI czar
id: 2026-09-19-trump-ai-force-czar · updated 2026-09-29 · open in the interactive timeline