Republican House speaker breaks with Trump on AI regulation, exposing party rift

Amid a widening debate in Washington over how fast to develop artificial intelligence, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has raised the possibility of legislation to establish safety guardrails for the AI industry — a stance that puts him at odds with President Donald Trump, who has strongly opposed AI regulation.

Johnson said Monday (local time), according to Bloomberg, that Congress may need to pass legislation creating safety guardrails for the AI industry.

He said his goal was "to protect American innovation and national security by carefully designing safeguards that can prevent AI-related harm, while maintaining an edge over China and other competitors."

The remarks stand in contrast to Trump, who has sharply criticized calls for AI regulation. Trump has argued that efforts to slow AI development could weaken US competitiveness and benefit China.

Trump wrote on social media recently that there is "a disgusting plot" targeting AI and data centers, adding that "the only country that would be happy about this is China." He has also said that "the only guardrail AI needs is a strong and smart president."

Johnson, however, drew a line against any suggestion that he and Trump are at odds. He said Trump's remarks also reflect a shared goal of maintaining US dominance in the AI race against China.

Johnson also said Trump plans to summon AI company executives within days to discuss related issues.

Several leading AI executives in the United States have recently warned of the risks of rapid AI advancement and called for a more measured pace of development — starting with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, followed by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and xAI CEO Elon Musk.

Trump pushed back directly, arguing that if US companies slow their AI development, China could seize the technological lead. At the same time, voices within the Republican Party calling for some level of regulation — covering data center construction and AI model safety, among other areas — have grown louder, broadening the debate over AI policy.

Actual legislation, however, appears to be a long way off. Johnson himself acknowledged that it would take "some time" to craft a bill capable of securing sufficient support.

Bloomberg noted that the House is set to leave Washington on Thursday and is not expected to return until after the November midterm elections, making it unlikely that Congress will take up any AI-related legislation in the near term.

As the debate over AI development pace spreads from the tech industry into politics, US AI policy has reached a crossroads. Trump's opposition to regulation — framed around the technological rivalry with China — and the growing chorus in Congress calling for safety guardrails are now pulling in opposite directions.