PARIS (AP) ā U.S. Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday that āexcessive regulationā could cripple the rapidly growing in a rebuke to European efforts to curb AIās risks.
The speech underscored a widening, three-way rift over the future of the technology.
The United States, under to fuel innovation, while Europe is tightening the reins with strict regulations to ensure safety and accountability. Meanwhile, China is rapidly expanding AI through state-backed tech giants, vying for dominance in the global race.
The U.S. was noticeably absent from an international document signed by more than 60 nations, including China, making the Trump Administration the glaring outlier in a global pledge to promote responsible AI development.
Vance's debut
At the summit, Vance made his first major policy speech since becoming vice president last month, framing AI as an economic turning point but cautioning that āat this moment, we face the extraordinary prospect of a new industrial revolution, one on par with the invention of the steam engine."
"But it will never come to pass if overregulation deters innovators from taking the risks necessary to advance the ball,ā Vance added.
The 40-year-old vice president, leveraging the AI summit and a security conference in Munich later this week, is seeking to project Trumpās forceful new style of diplomacy.
The Trump administration will āensure that AI systems developed in America are free from ideological bias,ā Vance said and pledged the U.S. would ānever restrict our citizensā right to free speech.ā
A global AI pledgeāand the U.S. absence
The international document, signed by scores of countries, including European nations, pledged to āpromote AI accessibility to reduce digital dividesā and āensure AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure, and trustworthy.ā It also called for āmaking AI sustainable for people and the planetā and protecting āhuman rights, gender equality, linguistic diversity, consumer rights, and intellectual property.ā
In a surprise move, China ā long criticized for its human rights record ā signed the declaration, further widening the distance between America and the rest in the tussle for AI supremacy.
The agreement comes as the EU enforces its AI Act, the worldās first comprehensive AI law, which took effect in August 2024.
A growing divide
Vance also took aim at foreign governments for ātightening the screwsā on U.S. tech firms, saying such moves were troubling. His remarks underscored the growing divide between Washington and its European allies on AI governance.
European Commission President stressed that, āAI needs the confidence of the people and has to be safeā³ and detailed EU guidelines intended to standardize the blocās AI Act but acknowledged concerns over regulatory burden.
āAt the same time, I know that we have to make it easier and we have to cut red tape and we will,ā she added.
She also announced that the āInvestAIā initiative had reached a total of ā¬200 billion in AI investments across Europe, including ā¬20 billion dedicated to AI gigafactories.
A race for AI dominance
The summit laid bare competing global AI strategies ā Europe pushing to regulate and invest, China expanding AI through state-backed giants, and the U.S. doubling down on an unregulated, free-market approach.
French President positioned Europe as a āthird wayā in the AI race, one that like the U.S. and China.
āWe want a fair and open access to these innovations for the whole planet,ā he said in his closing speech, arguing that the AI sector āneeds rulesā on a global scale to build public trust and urging greater āinternational governance.ā
Macron also hailed newly announced investments in France and across Europe, underscoring the continentās ambitions in AI. āWeāre in the race,ā he said.
Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, special envoy of Xi Jinping, reinforced Beijingās intent to shape global AI standards.
Vance, a vocal critic of European content moderation policies, has suggested the U.S. should reconsider its NATO commitments if European governments impose restrictions on , X. His Paris visit was also expected to include candid discussions on Ukraine, AIās role in global power shifts, and U.S.-China tensions.
How to regulate AI?
Concerns over AIās potential dangers have loomed over the summit, particularly as nations grapple with how to regulate a technology that is increasingly entwined with defense and warfare.
"I think one day we will have to find ways to control AI or else we will lose control of everything,ā said Admiral Pierre Vandier, NATOās commander who oversees the allianceās modernization efforts.
Beyond diplomatic tensions, a global public-private partnership is being launched called āCurrent AI,ā aimed at supporting large-scale AI initiatives for the public good.
Analysts see this as an opportunity to counterbalance the dominance of private companies in AI development. However, it remains unclear whether the U.S. will support such efforts.
Separately, a high-stakes battle over AI power is escalating in the private sector.
A group of investors led by Musk ā who now heads Trumpās Department of Government Efficiency ā has made a $97.4 billion bid to acquire the nonprofit behind OpenAI. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, attending the Paris summit, swiftly rejected the offer on X.
The US-China rivalry
In Beijing, officials on Monday condemned , while Chinese company DeepSeekās new AI chatbot has prompted calls in the U.S. Congress to limit its use over security concerns. China promotes open-source AI, arguing that accessibility will ensure global AI benefits.
French organizers hope the summit will boost investment in Europeās AI sector, positioning the region as a credible contender in an industry shaped by U.S.-China competition.
French President , addressing the energy demands of AI, contrasted Franceās nuclear-powered approach with the U.S.ās reliance on fossil fuels, quipping: France won't ādrill, baby, drill,ā but "plug, baby, plug.ā
___
Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet and Kelvin Chan in Paris contributed to this report.
Aamer Madhani And Thomas Adamson, The Associated Press
