The second Trump administration has launched a full-scale effort to achieve “unchallenged global technological dominance.” It is accelerating the construction of AI infrastructure, from opening up federal lands to ramping up energy production. It has invoked AI-enabled “efficiency” in order to replace federal workers, removed agency guidance on algorithmic discrimination,  and supercharged the use of AI in areas including defense and immigration enforcement. The administration has also pursued novel public ownership efforts, such as taking equity  in Intel and critical minerals firms. To what end? Officials say they are now maximizing the “export of the American AI technology stack.” This is not the deregulatory tech agenda predicted by both supporters and critics of President Trump. So what is it?

How should we understand the administration’s actions when it comes to AI? What dynamics are driving these changes in AI policymaking? What might be the downstream consequences for Americans? And how should we respond?