Technologies

Trump’s AI Action Plan Is Here: 5 Key Takeaways

The president wants to cut regulations on AI companies and data centers. Critics say the proposal carries big risks.

The Trump administration on Wednesday laid out the steps it plans to take to ensure «global AI dominance» for the US, with an AI Action Plan that calls for cutting regulations to speed up the development of artificial intelligence tools and the infrastructure to power them.

Critics said the plan is a handout to tech and fossil fuel companies, slashing rules that could protect consumers, prevent pollution and fight climate change.

Though the plan itself isn’t binding (it includes dozens of policy recommendations), Trump did sign three executive orders to put some of these steps into action. The changes and proposals follow how the Trump administration has approached AI and technology over the past six months — giving tech companies a largely free hand; focusing on beating China; and prioritizing the construction of data centers, factories and fossil fuel power plants over environmental regulations.

It’s seizing on the moment created by the arrival of ChatGPT less than three years ago and the ensuing wave of generative AI efforts by Google, Meta and others.

«My administration will use every tool at our disposal to ensure that the United States can build and maintain the largest and most powerful and advanced AI infrastructure anywhere on the planet,» Trump said during remarks Wednesday evening at a summit presented by the Hill and Valley Forum and the All-In Podcast. He signed the three executive orders at the event.

The administration and tech industry groups touted the plan as a framework for US success in a race against China. «President Trump’s AI Action Plan presents a blueprint to usher in a new era of US AI dominance,» Jason Oxman, president and CEO of the tech industry trade group ITI, said in a statement.

Consumer groups said the plan focuses on deregulation and would hurt consumers by reducing the rules that could protect them.

«Whether it’s promoting the use of federal land for dirty data centers, giving the FTC orders to question past cases, or attempting to revive some version of the soundly defeated AI moratorium by tying federal funds to not having ‘onerous regulation’ according to the FCC, this is an unwelcome distraction at a critical time for government to get consumer protection right with increasing AI use and abuse,» Ben Winters, director of AI and privacy at the Consumer Federation of America, said in a statement.

Here’s a look at the proposals in the plan.

Slashing regulations for AI infrastructure

The plan says AI growth will require infrastructure, including chip factories, data centers and more energy generation. And it blames environmental regulations for getting in the way. In response, it proposes exemptions for AI-related construction from certain environmental regulations, including those aimed at protecting clean water and air. It also suggests making federal lands available for data center construction and related power plants.

To provide energy for all those data centers, the plan calls for steps to prevent the «premature decommissioning of critical power generation resources.» This likely refers to keeping coal-fired power plants and other mostly fossil-fuel-driven infrastructure online for longer. In his remarks, Trump specifically touted his support for coal and nuclear power plants.

The administration also called to prioritize the connection of new «reliable, dispatchable power sources» to the grid and specifically named nuclear fission and fusion and advanced geothermal generation. Earlier this month, the president signed a bill that would end many tax credits and incentives for renewable energy — wind and solar — years earlier than planned. Wind and solar make up the bulk of the new energy generation being added to the US grid right now.

«This US AI Action Plan doesn’t just open the door for Big Tech and Big Oil to team up, it unhinges and removes any and all doors — it opens the floodgates, continuing to kneecap our communities’ rights to protect ourselves,» KD Chavez, executive director of the Climate Justice Alliance, said in a statement. «With tech and oil’s track records on human rights and their role in the climate crisis, and what they are already doing now to force AI dominance, we need more corporate and environmental oversight, not less.»

Fewer rules around AI technology

Congress ended up not including a moratorium on state AI rules in the recently passed tax and spending bill but efforts to cut regulations around AI continue from the executive branch in the action plan. «AI is far too important to smother in bureaucracy at this early stage, whether at the state or Federal level,» the plan says.

The plan recommends that several federal agencies review whether existing or proposed rules would interfere with the development and deployment of AI. The feds would consider whether states’ regulatory climate is favorable for AI when deciding to award funding. Federal Trade Commission investigations and orders would be reviewed to determine that they don’t «advance theories of liability that unduly burden AI innovation.»

Those rule changes could undermine efforts to protect consumers from problems caused by AI, critics said. «Companies — including AI companies — have a legal obligation to protect their products from being used for harm,» Justin Brookman, director of tech policy at Consumer Reports, said in a statement. «When a company makes design choices that increase the risk their product will be used for harm, or when the risks are particularly serious, companies should bear legal responsibility.»

Ideology and large language models

The plan proposes some steps around ensuring AI «protects free speech and American values,» further steps in the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back federal policies around what it refers to as «diversity, equity and inclusion,» along with references to the problems of misinformation and climate change. It calls for eliminating references to those items in the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s AI Risk Management Framework. Federal agencies would only be allowed to contract with AI developers who «ensure that their systems are objective and free from top-down ideological bias.»

The Trump administration has recently announced contracts of up to $200 million each to developers Anthropic, Google, OpenAI and xAI. Grok, the model from Elon Musk’s xAI, has recently come under fire for spouting antisemitism and hate speech.

Dealing with workforce challenges

The plan acknowledges that AI will «transform how work gets done across all industries and occupations, demanding a serious workforce response to help workers navigate that transition» and recommends actions by federal agencies including the Department of Labor intended to mitigate the harms of AI-driven job displacement. The plan calls for the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis to monitor how AI affects the labor market using data already collected. An AI Workforce Research Hub under the Department of Labor would lead monitoring and issue policy recommendations.

Most of the actual plans to help workers displaced by AI involve retraining those workers for other jobs or to help states do the same.

Other jobs-related recommendations are aimed at boosting the kinds of jobs needed for all those data centers and chip manufacturing plants — like electricians and HVAC technicians.

These plans and others to encourage AI literacy and AI use in education drew praise from the Software & Information Industry Association, a tech industry trade group. «These are key components for building trust and ensuring all communities can participate in and benefit from AI’s potential,» Paul Lekas, SIIA’s senior vice president of global public policy, said in a statement.

More AI in government

The plan envisions more use of AI by the federal government. A talent exchange program would allow employees with experience or talent in AI to be detailed to other agencies in need. The General Services Administration would create a toolbox of AI models that would help agencies see models to choose from and use cases in other parts of the government.

Every government agency would also be required to ensure employees who could use AI in their jobs have access to and training for AI tools.

Many recommendations focus specifically on the Department of Defense, including creating a virtual proving ground for AI and autonomous systems. AI companies have already been signing contracts with the DOD to develop AI tools for the military.

Technologies

Apple Reportedly Eyes ‘iPhone Ultra’ Name for Folding Phone Expected This Year

It’s another week and another bunch of rumors about the company’s first foldable phone.

It’s a new week and a new set of rumors for Apple’s first foldable phone. If Tuesday’s reports are true, the device will be called the Ultra, have a bookish shape and launch in September.

The main report comes from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who said the foldable is on track for a September launch, despite Nikkei Asia reporting that the phone might not launch until 2027 due to issues that cropped up during the engineering test phase.

Citing unnamed sources, Gurman said Apple will introduce the foldable phone in September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. Those phones would likely go on sale about a week after being unveiled.

An Apple representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. It’s important to note that while rumors abound, Apple has confirmed none of them — not even the existence of a foldable iPhone.

Still, the earlier Nikkei Asia report was jarring enough to send Apple’s stock down 5.1% before it rebounded later, Gurman noted. The Nikkei Asia story said unexpected issues had arisen during engineering testing and that more time was needed to make «necessary adjustments.» Under a worst-case scenario, the first shipment of the foldables would not occur until 2027, the report said.

Looks like a book

Meanwhile, consumer tech reviewer Sonny Dickson posted images on X showing dummy models indicating how big the iPhone Fold, iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max might be. In the image, the foldable has an almost square shape when fully opened.

Dummy images are useful for phone accessory manufacturers — such as case-makers — so they can get a head start on mass production before the devices are launched. When phones are released, consumers are quick to order cases and other accessories, so the sizes need to be known. It is unclear whether the dummy models shown are actual mockups from Apple.

People who commented on X didn’t seem to love the dummy images, particularly because the models shown appear to lack MagSafe, Apple’s magnetic system on the back of the phone that lets chargers and other accessories snap on.

Stefan Moser wrote, «If the Fold is missing MagSafe, this will be a big NO for me.»

There were other criticisms, too.

An X user going by DasnkiCS posted that the phone looks «too wide, can’t palm that easily in normal phone use.»

And another X user, Brosnan Hoban, wrote, «Fold looks like a credit card from 2050.»

What’s in a name?

Tuesday’s other big rumor concerned the foldable’s name.

A leaker, Digital Chat Station, posted on the Chinese social site Weibo that the foldable iPhone could be called the iPhone Ultra. The post also said Chinese competitors may use the Ultra name for their own foldables to compete directly with Apple on design, specs, and price.

The predominant rumored name has been the iPhone Fold, but others have included Flip, Duo and iFold.

In March, Gurman wrote in his Power On newsletter that Apple was considering a full line of Ultra products, possibly including a foldable phone, an M6 MacBook Pro with OLED, a foldable iPad and high-end Macs. Gurman also said Apple might introduce AirPods with «computer-vision cameras» to send visual data to Siri for its AI assistant feature.

We’ve seen a steady stream of tidbits about the foldable recently. There could be a large inner screen for multitasking, and people could open apps side by side. There might also be two rear cameras, a front-facing camera and a Touch ID side button.

Whatever Apple finally comes up with, it will be playing catch-up. Other major phone-makers already have foldable phones on the market, including the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold, the OnePlus Open, the Huawei Mate XT, the Honor Magic V5 and the Motorola Razr Ultra.

Technologies

Artemis II Astronauts Name Moon Crater After Commander Reid Wiseman’s Late Wife

The emotional moment was streamed by NASA moments after the crew made history.

On Monday, after the crew aboard Artemis II made a historic feat by breaking Apollo 13’s distance record, they made the moment even more special by proposing to name one of the craters on the moon «Carroll,» in memory of Commander Reid Wiseman’s late wife.

While contacting Mission Control, Mission Specialist and astronaut Jeremy Hansen stated that the «close-knit astronaut family» previously lost a loved one who was «the spouse of Reid, the mother of Katie and Ellie.»

«It’s a bright spot on the moon,» Hansen said while describing the crater during the emotional call. «And we would like to call it Carroll.»

After the request, you can see Wiseman embrace Hansen before the rest of the crew joins in for a group hug.

Carroll Wiseman died in 2020 at 46 years old from cancer. Wiseman’s NASA bio page states that Carroll «dedicated her life to helping others as a newborn intensive care unit Registered Nurse.»

Before the Artemis II mission, Wiseman posted a selfie with his two daughters on X with a caption that reads in part, «I love these two ladies, and I’m boarding that rocket a very proud father.»

Follow CNET’s coverage of the 10-day Artemis II mission as the Orion makes its way back to Earth.

Technologies

Artemis II Astronauts Are Using iPhones to Capture Stunning Space Images

After smartphones were cleared by NASA for space missions, the crew members of the Integrity spacecraft are beaming back lots of iPhone photos.

The four astronauts aboard the Integrity spacecraft now headed home from their historic arc around the moon really are like the rest of us: Sometimes they reach for their smartphones to snap photos.

For the Artemis II mission, iPhone 17 Pro Max phones have been used to capture photos inside the capsule of the astronauts pondering the views of Earth and working on mission objectives. (Technically, NASA refers to them as PCDs – personal computing devices.)

Smartphones were cleared for use in space for the first time in February. In a post on X, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote, «We are giving our crews the tools to capture special moments for their families and share inspiring images and video with the world.»

Early in the mission, Commander Reid Wiseman snapped a pair of photos looking out the window with Earth behind him. Mission specialist Christina Koch and her dynamic curls in zero-gravity also captured a pensive view looking out over the planet. All three were made using the front camera — because wouldn’t you want to grab a selfie if you were in space?

The iPhone 17 Pro’s rear cameras are pulling their own weight during the mission, too. During the live broadcast as the crew approached the moon, Wiseman took a photo of the moon’s surface using the iPhone’s telephoto camera at 8x zoom. He turned the screen toward one of the video cameras mounted inside the spacecraft, creating an image of the moon’s surface alone against the darkness of the unlit cabin, with the iPhone’s signature rounded edges and Dynamic Island cutout at the top.

The main photo workhorses on this trip are a Nikon D5 DSLR and a Nikon Z9. The D5 is a model that has been used on several space excursions, and the Z9 is onboard as an experimental camera.

For NASA missions, every piece of equipment must be tested and certified, which is why the previously-approved D5 has a secure spot. Cameras must be resistent to space environmental factors like radiation, and safe if they’re floating around the capsule. However, the iPhones in space now are off-the-shelf models, according to a report by Jackie Watties of CNN.

The moon flyby was especially photo-intensive, with astronauts switching places several times so that two were always at windows with cameras and relating what they could see with their eyes. This photo of mission specialist and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen taking images using one of the Nikon cameras shows how some windows have camera shrouds attached. The shroud ensures that light from the interior isn’t reflected in the glass.

In a particularly relatable photo, Hansen is also using the front-facing camera of a white iPhone 17 Pro — as a portable mirror while he shaves. As the (modified) saying goes, the best selfie screen is the one you have with you.

The iPhone 17 Pro isn’t the first Apple product to go into space. Crew members have taken iPods, iPads and AirPods on missions since the Space Shuttle era. The Mac Portable even went up on a shuttle (and revealed that its trackball in zero-G isn’t the best option).

An Apple representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.