Trump expected to appoint Jay Clayton as AI czar, reports say

What happened

Reports say President Donald Trump is expected to appoint Jay Clayton, the US director of national intelligence, as the new AI czar. CNN and other media reported the move on Friday, citing unidentified sources. CBS News first reported that Clayton was the frontrunner for the AI position.

A White House official told CBS that only the president would make such an announcement, calling the reports speculation.

The Wall Street Journal reported on October 3 that Clayton will head the administration's AI efforts and chair a new White House task force. Clayton told the Journal the task force will assess the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence.

The task force is expected to define the federal government's role for the technology within a 120-day timeline. A senior White House official said the team will be called the "Super Intelligence Force" (SI), a name Trump prefers over the term AI.

Clayton said the president asked for a group to keep the US leading in superintelligence and to put the interests of the American people first.

Why it matters

Whoever sets AI rules will significantly affect valuations across the sector, according to the report. That makes the AI czar and the task force's recommendations important for AI platforms, chip manufacturers, and software companies.

The mix of voluntary standards, Trump's preference for limited regulation, and the new superintelligence task force could shape views of those companies. After a White House meeting, developers backed voluntary safety standards that Trump called morally binding.

While Dario Amodei of Anthropic and Sam Altman of OpenAI want federal rules for advanced AI models, Trump has previously opposed AI regulation. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also argued that such regulation was not necessary.

The report says AI regulation appears inevitable, even as the direction of valuations is unknown. The 120-day timeline and formal task force have created expectations for forthcoming policy updates.

What the data shows

As this news dropped, Bitcoin was trading at $85,000, up +0.5% over the past 24 hours. The broader crypto market was up +0.6% as the total crypto market cap shot back above $2.94 trillion.

Background

Clayton ran the Securities and Exchange Commission in Trump's first term and was interim US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. He is expected to keep his current role as director of national intelligence.

The Senate confirmed Clayton in July to lead the intelligence community, a position that oversees 18 US intelligence agencies. During his confirmation hearing, Clayton described AI as a game changer and said it is both an opportunity and a threat.

David Sacks, a venture capitalist, formerly handled AI and cryptocurrency policy for the administration. He finished a 130-day tenure as crypto and AI czar.

US rules limit special government employees to 130 days of work in a 12-month period. Sacks also co-chairs the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

What is still unclear

• A White House official told CBS that only the president would make such an announcement and called the reports speculation.
• CNBC has reached out to the White House for comments but has not yet received a response.
• The report says the direction of valuations is still unclear, while AI regulation appears inevitable.

Questions readers ask