President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order on June 2 to promote advanced artificial intelligence innovation and security in the United States. The order outlines steps for federal agencies to strengthen cybersecurity, encourage collaboration with the private sector, and protect American intellectual property.
The order states that the United States continues to lead in artificial intelligence due to its talent and innovation, as well as a regulatory approach that avoids stifling growth. Trump said his administration has “unleashed tremendous technological growth and economic investment in AI by slashing the bureaucratic constraints that the prior administration placed on America’s AI developers and researchers, and by instead encouraging AI innovation and accelerating responsible AI adoption across government and industry.”
To address national security concerns associated with advanced AI capabilities, the executive order directs several agencies—including the Committee on National Security Systems, Department of War, Department of Homeland Security through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB), National Cyber Director, Secretary of Treasury, National Security Agency (NSA), Office of Personnel Management, among others—to take specific actions within 30 or 60 days. These include prioritizing cyber defense for critical systems; issuing directives to expedite protection for civilian federal information systems; expanding access to cybersecurity tools for state authorities, rural hospitals, community banks, and local utilities; forming an AI cybersecurity clearinghouse; evaluating grant funding for vulnerability detection projects; and expanding hiring pathways for cybersecurity specialists.
The order also calls for developing a classified benchmarking process to assess advanced cyber capabilities of AI models—referred to as “covered frontier models”—and designing a voluntary framework allowing developers early engagement with government regarding these models’ designation. It specifies that “nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the creation of a mandatory governmental licensing…for new AI models,” maintaining a voluntary approach rather than imposing new regulatory requirements.
Additionally, it instructs the Attorney General to prioritize enforcement against criminal actors who use artificial intelligence unlawfully under existing federal statutes related to unauthorized computer access or data breaches.
The executive order concludes by affirming that it does not alter existing legal authorities or create enforceable rights beyond current law.