Former US president Barack Obama has urged congressional Democrats to make artificial intelligence a central policy issue and develop a clear plan for its economic and safety effects. At a fundraising event, he said the technology is advancing quickly in private hands and could be dangerous without public oversight, while also pointing to potential benefits such as faster drug development.
House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, who interviewed Obama at the event, agreed that government action is needed. Obama has also spoken with Anthropic chief Dario Amodei and OpenAI chief Sam Altman, according to the report, positioning himself as an informal adviser rather than a current officeholder with authority to set policy.
The comments follow Amodei’s proposal to give independent safety evaluators deeper access to leading AI companies and establish common standards. Altman and Elon Musk publicly signaled support, with Altman saying OpenAI would offer independent evaluators access resembling that of employees. The details and enforcement mechanism have not been settled.
President Donald Trump took the opposing emphasis, arguing that the United States must retain its lead over China and warning against forces pressing for restraint. The exchange exposes the policy choice facing lawmakers: outside evaluation has gained support from several industry leaders, but any binding framework must still resolve who performs the checks, what standards apply and whether restrictions could slow domestic development.