But critics say the framework falls short on accountability. Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of The Alliance for Secure AI, said the proposals offer “no path to accountability” for AI-related harms.
The White House on Friday introduced its long-awaited national artificial intelligence framework, aiming to prevent individual states from enacting their own rules and to carry forward the Trump administration’s lighter approach to AI oversight.
The framework is based on an executive order President Donald Trump signed in December, which barred states from imposing separate AI regulations. It addresses a wide array of issues, including data center operations and AI-related fraud.
Officials say the plan could shape U.S. leadership in AI, a technology increasingly affecting employment, financial markets, and the way people access information, even as safety concerns grow amid rapid adoption.
The administration outlined six goals for Congress designed to foster innovation while maintaining public trust. “The White House’s national AI legislative framework will unleash American ingenuity to win the global AI race, delivering breakthroughs that create jobs, lower costs, and improve lives for Americans across the country,” said Michael Kratsios, assistant to the president for science and technology and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Among its proposals, the framework urges Congress to equip parents with better “tools” to oversee their children’s digital activities. It also calls for streamlining permits for data centers so they can generate their own power, and strengthening legal measures against AI-enabled scams.
The administration is recommending a policy that balances intellectual property protections with the need for real-world content to train AI systems. It also urged Congress to “prevent the United States government from coercing technology providers, including AI providers, to ban, compel, or alter content based on partisan or ideological agendas.”
Rather than centralizing AI oversight in a single agency, the White House advises Congress to regulate the technology through sector-specific bodies and to preempt any state laws that could affect AI development.
Currently, AI is largely unregulated, even as it touches areas ranging from healthcare and policing to personal communication. In the absence of federal legislation, some states have already passed laws targeting potentially harmful uses, such as deepfakes and biased hiring algorithms.
Supporters of a unified federal approach warn that a patchwork of state rules could slow innovation and hurt U.S. competitiveness in the global AI race with China, with potential economic and national security consequences.
But critics say the framework falls short on accountability. Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of The Alliance for Secure AI, said the proposals offer “no path to accountability” for AI-related harms. Brad Carson, who leads the Anthropic-backed Public First Action group, compared the plan to social media regulation, describing it as “like saccharine: empty of nutrition, certain to leave a bitter aftertaste, and probably carcinogenic,” in a post on X.
Conversely, proponents of limited AI oversight welcomed the White House announcement. Collin McCune, head of government affairs at Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, called it “a big step” in a post on X, arguing federal rules are needed to protect users and “provide clear rules for our innovators.”
The administration said it will work with Congress in the coming months “to turn this framework into legislation that the President can sign,” though many experts say passing any law before the November midterms will be challenging.