Trump refuses to slow AI race with China amid 'AI could kill all humans' warning
DUBLIN, IRELAND: President Donald Trump on Sunday, September 13, dismissed growing concerns around Artificial Intelligence's rapid development and its implications for the future of humanity, citing competition with China.
This comes after former President Barack Obama issued a stark warning to Democrats about a "dangerous" development of AI, urging Democrats to focus on AI once they secure victory in the midterms.
.@POTUS: "We're leading China in AI. We're the most sophisticated country in the world and, frankly, I want to keep it that way — because whoever wins AI wins." pic.twitter.com/KPpMkXZDnX
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 13, 2026
Trump accepts guardrails on tech but refuses to lose China race
President Donald Trump said that guardrails can be placed on the technology, but the US cannot lose the AI race to China in the process.
“Well, I say this, we’re leading China on AI. We’re the most sophisticated country in the world, and frankly I want to keep it that way, because whoever wins AI, wins,” Trump told reporters at his golf club in Doonbeg, Ireland, according to a White House pool report.
“And we can put guardrails, and we can do this and that, but I think you have a lot of negative forces that are bringing it up and they’re bringing up things that won’t happen,” he added.
Former employee warns AI could kill humans
Trump's assurance against the threats of AI came days after Jacob Coxon, a former Anthropic and OpenAI employee, warned in an online post that researchers at the firms “believe AI could kill all humans” but still push forward in a race to develop superintelligence - a hypothetical AI agent that outperforms all of humanity’s cognitive performance.
Coxon’s assessment went viral and prompted a chorus of officials, lawmakers, and even some celebrities to sound the alarm on the potential dangers of AI.
Besides Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) weighed in on the topic, with the latter pushing for Congress to act urgently on AI safety. Johnson, echoing Trump, urged caution.
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson:
— Clash Report (@clashreport) September 13, 2026
If Congress just races in and does some sort of emergency session to try to regulate AI, we will lose the race to China.
And that is a threat to every single American. pic.twitter.com/2R8ANSD98g
“If Congress just races in and does some sort of emergency session to try to regulate AI, we will lose the race to China, and that is a threat to every single American. So, we’ve got to have balance. We’ve got to have steady hands at the wheel,” Johnson told CNN’s Jake Tapper on 'State of the Union'.
“But we don’t need everybody to panic right now,” he added later. “We need to handle this new technology like we have others in the past, and make sure we’re doing everything we can, responsibly, to also not smother American innovation. We have to do both things simultaneously.”
Obama urges Dems to prioritize AI
Obama's address at a private fundraiser in Manhattan urged House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) to be prepared to move in 2027 should the Democrats reclaim the majority in November, the New York Times reported on Sunday, September 13.
“Once you are Speaker, I would strongly urge that the Democrats put together a framework for a very public conversation," Obama said. “I would talk about this, and I would say, 'Here’s our plan for safety. Here’s our plan for making sure our kids are not corrupted by this.'"
