Trump Proposes AI Rebrand and 'AI Force' as Industry Safety Debate Intensifies

President Donald Trump published a series of statements over the weekend rejecting the artificial intelligence safety debate as a political hoax, as reported by TechCrunch AI (https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/19/trump-suggests-rebranding-ai-with-a-new-name-says-hes-also-creating-an-ai-force/). Writing on Truth Social, Trump argued that efforts to slow AI development were designed to harm the country, comparing criticisms of the technology to past political disputes.

Trump also suggested rebranding artificial intelligence entirely, arguing that the phrase is inaccurate and lacks eloquence. He launched a poll asking followers to choose among three replacement terms: Superior Intelligence, Extreme Intelligence, or Supreme Intelligence. The president claimed that opposition to the sector initially targeted physical data centers before pivoting directly against AI models, though he provided no evidence that public pushback against computing infrastructure is coordinated or disingenuous. Data center construction has faced bipartisan scrutiny over power and water demands, with New York recently halting permits for large projects.

The statements follow recent comments Trump made at a golf tournament, where he said he remains open to guardrails but claimed improper forces were driving the conversation. Trump pledged to protect the domestic sector as it expands and announced plans to establish an 'AI Force,' likening the initiative to the Space Force created during his first term. He also stated he would soon appoint a federal 'AI Czar.' Venture capitalist David Sacks previously stepped down from that role earlier this year to co-chair the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

The administration has not outlined the specific operational mandate, budget, or legal structure for either the AI Force or the upcoming czar position. Trump's intervention comes amid heightened industry friction: an Anthropic researcher recently resigned over catastrophic risk concerns, prompting Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei to propose a plan to pace frontier model releases that received endorsements from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Meanwhile, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently appeared on-stage with Trump by phone at the All-In Summit, echoing the president's dismissal of the safety pushback and stating industry leaders would not allow technological progress to slow.