White House AI Policy Paralyzed by Internal Disputes Ahead of Trump's China Summit

Disagreements among administration officials and the tight timeline ahead of President Trump’s China summit are delaying efforts to launch a federal response to the next frontier of artificial intelligence.

Why it matters: Despite the release of Mythos—Anthropic’s most advanced AI model yet—federal AI regulation remains stalled weeks later. Early discussions about federal safety reviews for new AI models have slowed as officials in the Trump administration appear divided on the approach.

Government leaders are concerned about the capabilities of leading AI labs’ latest models, but bureaucratic realities in Washington are hindering immediate action.

Driving the News

AI is expected to be on the agenda for Trump’s trip to Beijing this week. The tech industry is eagerly awaiting new guidance in response to the latest frontier AI models.

One industry source told Axios that the administration may wait for the outcome of the China summit before finalizing decisions on AI policy.

The global landscape is also growing more complex, with European governments seeking access to models like Mythos for their own security testing.

Key Statements and Reactions

Administration officials had to walk back one of their own proposals—a suggestion for safety reviews akin to an “FDA for AI”—highlighting a lack of consensus on next steps.

After Kevin Hassett, Director of the National Economic Council, suggested that “future AIs” might undergo a process “just like an FDA drug,” other officials quickly downplayed his remarks. Among them were White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and David Sacks, former AI and crypto czar.

“The real issue is not what the American labs do, it's the fact that Chinese models and other models that other actors could train are going to have advanced cyber capabilities within the next six months or so, and so we need to take steps now to harden our systems.”

David Sacks, co-chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, told Fox Business this week.

Hassett later clarified to CNBC that “nobody has an idea that we should do something like bring in a giant new bureaucracy to approve AIs.”

Diverging Views Within the Administration

“It's fair to say that there are some differing views in the administration about how to approach the issue of these highly capable AI systems,” another tech industry source with close government ties told Axios.

A White House official confirmed to Axios:

“The White House continues to balance advancing innovation and ensuring security in AI policymaking. Any policy announcement will come directly from the President. Discussion about potential executive orders is speculation.”

Industry Frustration Over Lack of Clarity

“What industry needs is some clarity going forward so that we know how to handle the next model breakthrough. This isn't a process we want to recreate on the fly every time there's new tech,” the industry source added.

On the opposing side, critics argue that delays could have serious consequences:

“We don't have time to waste, to point fingers or to let bureaucracy get in the way of implementing a process here for proper [AI] testing and communicating results.”