At a rally after the inauguration ceremony, President Trump brought a table to the stage where he signed a series of executive orders. The first of them was directed against 78 executive orders of the Biden administration, including the AI guidelines adopted in October 2023.
“Reversing this order will be the first of many steps the United States federal government will take to rebuild our institutions and our economy,” the text reads. There is no explanation for this, only a long list that begins with the words “the following actions are hereby canceled.” Some of them are related to the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic, while others are related to immigration, climate change, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
Biden’s executive order outlined an ambitious plan to create protections for the general public and best practices for the federal government with respect to artificial intelligence. Specifically, the executive order provides for new safety and security standards in addition to protocols for AI watermarking, as well as civil rights and consumer protection. It also laid out guidelines for mitigating the impact on workers of businesses using AI, and launched a new federal employment portal seeking “more AI talent.”
In separate executive orders on Monday, Trump also withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement for the second time. He did so during his first term, but Biden reinstated US participation when he took office.
