Trump signs executive order banning government from using woke AI systems

President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order furthering American AI dominance and banning the federal government from using any AI systems that are steeped in woke ideologies like critical race and gender theory. 

Ahead of the signing, Trump said "One and for all we are getting rid of woke. Is that okay? Because I know you had to hire all woke people."

An aide announced the series of executive orders on AI, presenting them to Trump, saying "the first executive order that we've prepared for your signature today relates to federal permitting for data center infrastructure. As you mentioned during your speech, this is a crucial issue affecting the entire AI industry. What this executive order will do is establish fast track permitting and ensure that the federal government is working to get data centers approved and through the permitting pipeline as quickly as possible."
 

"It's absolutely essential," said the aide, presenting the second order, "that American AI models and American the American AI industry dominates the future of this industry around the world. What this next Executive Order will do is is promote, through various instrumentalities of the federal government, the export abroad of American AI models to ensure American AI dominance in the future."

The last order in the stack relieved the government of having to use AI technology that is partisan in any way. "We don't want woke AI," said the aide, referencing Trump's speech ahead of the signing. "We want AI models based on accurate information that give accurate information and accurate answers. This executive order will ensure that when the federal government procures or promotes different AI models, that those AI models are ideologically neutral, that they don't embrace wokeism and critical race theory and all of these terrible theories that have done so much damage to our country."

Christopher Rufo, who was working on anti-woke initiatives during Trump's first term, said "Incredible: Trump has issued an executive order saying that the government will not purchase AI systems that default to black George Washington, refuse to celebrate the achievements of white people, or argue that misgendering someone is worse than a nuclear apocalypse."