Trump sets up White House AI task force, prompts data centres at rally

As Republicans face a challenging midterm race, US President Donald Trump has announced establishing a White House task force to assess risks and opportunities posed by artificial intelligence and rallied voters on the construction of data centres in the state of Ohio.

This as SoftBank's Masayoshi Son, long regarded as one of AI's most dedicated backer, reportedly voices concerns over the technology's safety risks while prompting the international society to tackle through joint efforts.

After hitting the campaign trail in the deep red states of Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama, US President Donald Trump arrives at Butler-Vandalia Student Activity Centre in key battleground Ohio to shore up support for GOP in the upcoming midterm elections.

Trump takes several minutes during his rally to defend building data centres that power the artificial intelligence industry and heaps praises on Senator Jon Husted for his attempt to push forward legislation on the contentious issue.

"We're also taking historic action to ensure that big tech data centres benefit local communities. We want them... look, there's so much money to be made for Ohio. You can't just turn them off. They'll go to China."

On Sunday, the US government announces a new federal task force that will coordinate efforts to keep the country at the forefront of AI and to "protect the interests, and improve the lives, of all Americans," according to a Truth Social post by Trump.

Head of the newly created Super Intelligence Force Jay Clayton will oversee the government's engagement with consumers, religious groups, AI companies and other stakeholders. He was appointed national intelligence chief in August.

Clayton says they will have 120 days to produce a report examining the risks and opportunities posed by the technology and recommending what role the federal government should play.

The move follows a White House meeting last Tuesday between Trump and a slew of business executives from tech firms including Anthropic, Google, Meta, OpenAI, Nvidia, and SpaceX.

They signed a voluntary accord that calls for more stringent internal controls and reviews of AI models, in what the Republican president describes as "self-policing."

Founder of tech investment giant SoftBank Group Masayoshi Son, who has directed funds totalling nearly 65 billion US dollars into ChatGPT creator OpenAI, is now worried as a string of breaches linked to rogue AI came to light in recent months.

At an event on the sidelines of the Science and Technology in Society Forum in Kyoto on Sunday, the Japanese billionaire notes it is imperative for nations to work together to harness the technology when the exponential leap of AI capabilities leave them no choice but to foster mutual trust.

Son issues a stern warning that superintelligence in the wrong hands can become "super dangerous"