President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he is forming an “AI Force” modeled on the Space Force he created in his first term. “For this purpose, I am forming the AI Force, much like I did Space Force,” Donald Trump wrote. He added that he would name an “AI czar” soon, and that “Only High I.Q. individuals need apply.”
The AI Force announcement caught his own advisers by surprise, according to Axios, and officials inside and outside the administration are now jockeying for the czar job. There is no application process or formal IQ threshold for the role. It reads as Trump describing the caliber of talent he wants rather than a literal test.
For now, the AI Force is an announcement rather than an established federal agency. The post did not say which department would house it or what its budget would be. It also gave no staffing numbers and no word on regulatory authority. Advisers are still working out what the organization will become.
Trump can’t actually build another Space Force without Congress
The Space Force comparison only goes so far, as that branch required an act of Congress through the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act. The president cannot create a new military branch on his own. If the AI Force ends up as an executive-branch task force or advisory group, he has far more latitude to set it up administratively.
White House science adviser Michael Kratsios said over the weekend that having one person coordinate AI issues across agencies is critical. However, a standalone statutory agency would require cooperation and funding from Congress.
This would not be Trump’s first AI czar. Venture capitalist David Sacks previously served as White House AI and crypto czar, helping to shape the administration’s AI Action Plan. He left that role in March after reaching the 130-day limit for special government employees, and he now co-chairs the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
The new role’s power will depend on where the president places it and what authority he delegates, as “czar” is an informal title in Washington. It does not automatically grant anyone the power to regulate private companies or rewrite budgets.
The Commerce Department’s Center for AI Standards and Innovation already evaluates models for cybersecurity and biosecurity risks. In June, Trump also signed a memorandum directing agencies to set up an AI National Security Strategic Reserve of outside experts. However, it is unclear whether the AI Force would replace these structures or sit on top of them.
The AI Force fits the growth-first strategy the administration has pushed since July 2025. Trump wrote that the government would not “hinder or stifle” the industry and would lean on existing criminal and civil law to go after wrongdoing. That approach sidesteps the debate over tighter AI regulation, as Trump has dismissed calls from researchers and industry leaders for a slowdown as a “hoax.” In the same post, Trump wrote that AI could eventually account for as much as 25% of U.S. GDP, which is his own projection rather than an established economic forecast.
Trump is set to host Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on September 24, where AI is expected to be one of the main subjects.
Published: Sep 22, 2026 10:15 am