“The only ‘guardrail’ for AI should be a strong and smart president. The US has one, and then some — that’s me, Trump”
US President Donald Trump published this post on September 14, 2026, on his social network Truth Social. The post was a reaction to a wave of statements from leaders of leading AI companies calling for a slowdown in artificial intelligence development. The occasion was an essay by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei titled “We Must Pace the Frontier,” in which he warned about the risks of losing control over frontier AI models. Amodei’s call was supported, among others, by Elon Musk.
In his post, Trump rejected the need for additional government regulation, stating that the government already has “enormous criminal and regulatory power” over AI companies. The president personally criticized Amodei, accusing him of hypocrisy. Trump called protests against the construction of data centers and the development of AI a “sick conspiracy” that benefits China exclusively.
The conflict dates back to February 2026, when Anthropic was negotiating with the Pentagon over a contract to use its Claude Gov technology in classified military networks. The company insisted on “red lines” — prohibiting the use of its AI for mass surveillance of Americans and for developing fully autonomous lethal weapons.
The Pentagon, in turn, demanded the right to use the technology “for all lawful purposes” without exceptions. The negotiations collapsed, after which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth officially designated Anthropic a “threat to the national security supply chain” — a status typically applied to adversary nations — and banned all Pentagon contractors from working with the company.
Anthropic’s place in defense contracts was subsequently taken by OpenAI, which agreed to the Defense Department’s terms without similar restrictions. China’s Foreign Ministry promptly responded to Trump’s latest statements, calling the stoking of fear and confrontation harmful to global AI governance.
