David Saxe, Chairman of the White House Science and Technology Advisory Committee. EPA=Yonhap News. 

The person in charge of artificial intelligence (AI) policy for the U.S. Donald Trump administration has stated that there will be no direct federal government support for AI.

David Saxe, Chairman of the White House Science and Technology Advisory Committee, known as the 'AI Tsar', explicitly stated on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) on the 6th (local time) that "there will be no federal government bailout for AI."

He pointed out, "There are at least five companies in the United States that possess major cutting-edge (AI) models," adding, "Even if one fails, the others will fill its place."

This statement is interpreted as the government's stance on comments made the previous day by an OpenAI executive who discussed the possibility of the government guaranteeing their AI chip procurement costs.

However, Chairman Saxe commented, "I don't think anyone has actually requested a bailout," and stated that "(if they had actually requested it) it would be absurd," implying that OpenAI had not sought direct government support.

He added, "But the company's executives can clarify their remarks," indirectly pressuring OpenAI.

He also said, "We want to make the permitting process and power generation easier," adding, "The goal is to build rapid (AI) infrastructure without increasing residential electricity rates."

This suggests that while the government will support the construction of AI infrastructure through policy, it will not provide direct support to individual companies.

The previous day, Sarah Friar, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of OpenAI, stated, "We are looking for ways the government can play a role," when explaining how they would cover the massive costs of purchasing AI chips.

Friar had introduced a plan at a conference the previous day, suggesting that if the government supported them by guaranteeing the costs of AI chip procurement, OpenAI could secure chips at a lower cost.

However, following controversy surrounding these remarks, she retracted her statement on social media platform LinkedIn, writing, "OpenAI is not asking for government backstops on infrastructure investment."

She clarified, "I want to make my remarks clear," and explained, "I was emphasizing that America's technological competitiveness can only be built if the private sector and the government each fulfill their respective roles."

Yonhap News