Pentagon CTO says government should not take stakes in AI companies

Investing.com -- The Department of Defense chief technology officer said Wednesday that the Trump administration should not pursue nationalization or partial government ownership of artificial intelligence companies.

Emil Michael told CNBC that government involvement in AI companies would not be beneficial. "We don't want government to get in the middle," he said, adding that nationalization "doesn't really go well" for an industry where U.S. leaders are among the largest companies globally.

The Trump administration has acquired stakes in several private-sector companies, including a 10% stake in Intel and a golden share in U.S. Steel, which is now a subsidiary of Nippon Steel.

Michael also expressed opposition to increased government regulatory oversight of AI companies. He referenced the tension between those who favor pre-regulation, similar to Europe's approach, and those who prefer holding companies accountable for developing safe products before release.

The official acknowledged that the recent AI hack of Hugging Face was concerning but questioned what type of regulation could prevent such incidents. He said it would be dangerous to place complete trust in a few AI executives.

Michael stated that existing laws from the Federal Trade Commission would be enforced. He suggested that companies developing new technology could voluntarily pause certain activities until they resolve outstanding issues.

President Trump has pushed back against recent calls for AI slowdown or increased regulation, describing such concerns as a hoax and scam. Michael agreed there is a coordinated campaign to create fear and drive irrational decisions that benefit certain incumbents in the AI industry.

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