# Obama reportedly urges Democrats to prioritize safety plan for AI

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/obama-reportedly-urges-democrats-to-prioritize-safety-plan-for-ai/
- Published: 2026-09-13T17:00:24+00:00
- Updated: 2026-09-13T23:15:30+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/13/obama-democrats-ai-safety
- Topics: AI, Americas, Art, Business, Culture, Government, Markets, Politics, Technology, World

## Key points

- Obama privately urged Democrats to prioritise a public AI safety framework.
- Trump dismissed AI regulation concerns, prioritising US-China competitiveness.
- AI datacentres have become a rare bipartisan flashpoint before the midterms.

## Summary

Barack Obama has privately urged Democratic leaders to make artificial intelligence safety and regulation a central, public policy priority, warning that the technology is advancing rapidly under private control and could pose real dangers without proper oversight. Speaking to House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries at a closed-door fundraiser in Manhattan, Obama argued the party needs a clear framework addressing safety, job losses and children's welfare, while acknowledging AI's potential benefits for drug development and clean energy. The intervention comes as Congress has taken little concrete action on AI regulation and as concerns mount following incidents such as rogue chatbots hacking a tech firm and a researcher's viral resignation warning about existential risks.

Donald Trump responded dismissively when asked about the matter while golfing in Ireland, saying "very negative forces" were raising unfounded fears and insisting his priority was ensuring the US stays ahead of China in the AI race. He had previously branded opponents of AI datacentres as "backwards and poor" on social media. The datacentre issue has emerged as a rare point of cross-party agreement ahead of the US midterm elections, with both Republicans and Democrats running ads opposing them, even as Trump has tried to block state-level AI regulations through legislation that ultimately stalled. Obama's comments, first reported by the New York Times, highlight a growing partisan and generational divide over how aggressively AI should be governed.

## Coverage

- [The Guardian: Obama reportedly urges Democrats to prioritize safety plan for AI](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/13/obama-democrats-ai-safety)
- [TechCrunch: Obama urges Democrats to have a ‘clear plan’ for AI safeguards](https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/13/obama-urges-democrats-to-have-a-clear-plan-for-ai-safeguards/)
- [Fox News: Obama privately sounds alarm on ‘dangerous’ AI, urges Democrats to put issue at center of agenda](https://www.foxnews.com/media/obama-privately-sounds-alarm-dangerous-ai-urges-democrats-put-issue-center-agenda)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.