Who Is on the Taskforce
Trump wrote that the group will coordinate the Federal Government's engagement with Consumers, Public Interest Groups, Religious Organizations, Critical Infrastructure Providers, and Super Intelligence Companies. Alongside Clayton, the team includes Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson, Undersecretary of Defense for Research, Engineering Emil Michael, and Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor. It will report directly to the president and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
Clayton took office as national intelligence director in August, after lawmakers rejected Trump's original pick, Bill Pulte. He previously served as US attorney for the Southern District of New York, where he oversaw several high-profile cases, including the drug trafficking case against former Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro. On AI, he has said, "When something's both an opportunity and a threat, you better get your arms around it."
The Push to Rename AI
The announcement follows an executive order Trump signed on 29 September to rename AI as Super Intelligence. He had earlier said the word artificial made it sound "fake." The order tells government departments and agencies to use the terms "SI" and "Super Intelligence" and to stop acknowledging the term artificial intelligence. SI will replace AI in official correspondence, websites, reports and other communications.
Some experts have questioned the logic of the change. They argue "super intelligence" usually refers to far more advanced systems, so the new label could cause confusion.
Some tech leaders have already adopted it. Elon Musk said on social media on Sunday that he will rename his firm's AI platform SpaceXAI as SpaceXSI. "SpaceX is a super intelligence company," he wrote. Musk was recently brought back into government to take part in a project studying the future of war. He previously headed the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, but his time in the administration ended in a public spat with Trump.
Pressure for Tighter Rules
The taskforce also arrives amid growing pressure from industry figures, including executives at OpenAI and Anthropic, to tighten regulation. Trump has dismissed calls for stronger oversight and largely left AI companies to regulate themselves. Last week, though, he said he would set up a board to oversee AI safety after top tech bosses signed what he called a "morally binding" pact. Executives from OpenAI, Anthropic, SpaceX and Google were among the signers on 29 September.
Not everyone in the industry wants tougher limits. In an interview published on 4 October, OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said the benefits of AI justify accepting some of its risks and argued the technology should stay accessible to the public. "The world should accept some bad things happening for the benefits of this technology and people having the agency," he said.
