Lawrence O’Donnell on Monday criticized former President Donald Trump for dismissing dire warnings about artificial intelligence, calling him the "worst possible person on earth" to address the technology's potential risks. O'Donnell, host of MSNBC's The Last Word, argued that while every president since 1949 has grappled with the weight of potential nuclear exchanges, Trump's response to AI concerns reveals a dangerous lack of understanding.
"Every president has felt the weight of the office on Inauguration Day when handed the nuclear codes," O'Donnell stated on his program. "Then came Donald Trump, the worst possible person on earth to be in the White House, in the week when the whole world realized AI could do what nuclear weapons have not yet done."
This commentary follows recent alarms raised by AI researchers and whistleblowers, including claims that AI could pose an existential threat to humanity by 2030. Industry leaders have also reportedly held discussions about establishing regulatory frameworks for AI development.
Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform, dismissed these concerns as a "hoax," asserting that AI and data centers "will not be stopped" under his administration. O'Donnell pointed to Trump's use of the word "hoax" as indicative of his dismissal of the issue's gravity.
O'Donnell also highlighted remarks by Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), who recently criticized Trump's stance on AI. Ossoff noted that Trump, on his first day back in office, rescinded President Joe Biden's 2023 executive order aimed at preventing the misuse of AI for bioweapons engineering. Ossoff suggested that Trump's family business ties to the AI industry compromise his ability to address the technology's risks objectively.
"See, a capable president would move swiftly to secure and reassure the American people, rush inspectors into Frontier [AI] labs, fortify the nation against bioterrorism, demand legislation from Congress, and lead the world toward an AI treaty," Ossoff said, as quoted by O'Donnell. Ossoff also pledged that if Democrats control the Senate, AI CEOs would be brought before the chamber to testify under oath, a move O'Donnell suggested Trump could not prevent.