U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order late Thursday aimed at restricting states' ability to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) and blocking certain existing state laws. According to the text published on the White House website, the order seeks to "maintain and enhance U.S. leadership in global AI through a minimally burdensome national AI policy framework."

During the signing ceremony in the Oval Office, Trump stated that AI companies "want to be in the U.S., they want to grow here, and we have massive investments coming. But if they need 50 approvals from 50 states, forget about it." The order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to establish an "AI Litigation Task Force" within 30 days, whose sole responsibility will be to challenge state AI laws conflicting with the Trump administration's light-touch regulatory vision.

Additionally, the order requires Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to identify existing state laws that "require AI models to alter their genuine outputs," aligning with the administration’s earlier efforts to counter what it calls "woke AI." States found imposing such "burdensome" requirements may need to pledge non-enforcement to access discretionary federal funds.

The order also tasks White House AI lead David Sacks and Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios with proposing a federal law to preempt or override state AI regulations. However, state laws related to child safety, data center infrastructure, and state procurement of AI—where federal standards are absent—remain unaffected.

This move follows Congress’s failure in late November to pass similar legislation. House Republicans had attempted to insert a clause in the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act declaring federal exclusivity in AI regulation, but it faced strong opposition and was ultimately removed.

Trump had previewed the order earlier this week, posting on social media about introducing a "ONE RULE" policy to avoid a patchwork of state regulations. Sacks later elaborated, arguing that interstate commerce should fall under federal jurisdiction. Critics, however, argue the order effectively blocks meaningful AI oversight, with bipartisan skepticism over Congress’s ability to replace state laws.

Opposition includes figures like former Congressman Brad Carson, who called the order "unpopular and unwise," and AI Legal Institute’s Mackenzie Arnold, who warned it could undermine state product safety laws. Meanwhile, tech leaders like NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen have lobbied against fragmented state rules.

This order marks another step in Trump’s AI policy agenda, following earlier moves to dismantle Biden-era AI safety rules and launch initiatives like the "Genesis Project," a national AI research effort likened to the Manhattan Project. Analysts caution the order faces legal challenges but note its potential to ease compliance costs for AI firms like NVIDIA (NVDA), Alphabet (GOOGL), and Dell Technologies (DELL), buoying market optimism amid recent AI bubble concerns.