Tech Companies Are Rejecting Trump’s Proposed ‘Woke’ AI Ban

The government’s proposed requirement for contractors’ AI systems to be “unbiased” are technically “infeasible,” businesses say.

Anthropic

The proposal to regulate AI bias in government contracts follows the high-profile dispute between the Trump administration and the AI company Anthropic. Li Hongbo/VCG/ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Trump administration is in the middle of finding out that it’s very hard — maybe even impossible — to regulate perceived “wokeness” in artificial intelligence.

The government’s main procurement agency is a year into trying to translate President Donald Trump’s ban on “woke” AI into contracting language, and technology companies are pouring out in opposition to what they’ve come up with.

The General Services Administration has formally proposed requiring companies to adhere to a broad list of “unbiased AI principles” in the systems they sell to the government, including “historical accuracy” and neutrality.