Mike Johnson opposes AI development pause, cites China competition risk

US House Speaker Mike Johnson rejected calls to pause artificial intelligence development on Tuesday, warning that doing so could give China an advantage. He told reporters in Washington that a moratorium would let Beijing catch up and that such a move would have serious national‑security implications for every American family.

Johnson’s comments come as pressure to regulate AI is rising across the political spectrum. Senators and former advisers have joined calls for tighter rules, citing risks to jobs, energy use and public safety. Senator Bernie Sanders, a self‑described democratic socialist, and Steve Bannon, a former Trump adviser, both appeared at the same event in Washington and urged that the industry face binding safety regulations. Sanders warned that AI could eliminate tens of millions of jobs and could even be used to design new viruses, raising bio‑security concerns. He urged President Trump to negotiate a treaty with Chinese President Xi Jinping to pause AI development. Bannon described AI as “the defining issue of our time” and said the United States must slow its growth to understand its risks, calling for a bipartisan effort.

Johnson said that AI firms should largely be left to police themselves. “They can self‑regulate. They don’t need the government to tell them to slow it down. If they want to slow it down, they should,” he said. He added that the United States already has safeguards in place and that existing government powers are sufficient to keep companies in check. Trump, on the other hand, dismissed fears that AI could pose an existential threat, calling them a “hoax” and insisting that a “strong and smart” president could keep the industry in control.

The debate highlights a growing divide over how best to manage a technology that can transform the economy and national security. If lawmakers move forward with stricter rules, the United States could risk losing its technological edge to China, which is already investing heavily in AI. Conversely, a pause could give Beijing a free pass to advance without the same regulatory constraints. The next steps will likely involve congressional hearings and further statements from industry leaders, as the country weighs the trade‑offs between innovation and safety.