AI Founders Celebrate Trump's Hands-Off Regulation at SF Tech Week
Voluntary safety pact and $1 trillion defense budget fuel optimism as OpenAI researchers allege firings over safety concerns.

KEY POINTS
- Trump signed a voluntary 308-word AI safety pact with tech leaders last month
- Administration favors industry self-regulation over mandatory rules
- $1 trillion defense budget allocates $13.5 billion to AI and autonomous systems
- Three OpenAI researchers say they were fired; cite fear and unclear rules hindering safety work
- OpenAI safety team leader David Robinson also left the company
During San Francisco Tech Week, AI founders and venture capitalists welcomed the Trump administration's decision not to impose mandatory AI regulations. President Trump hosted tech leaders last month to sign a voluntary 308-word safety pact covering "Super Intelligence," relying on internal lab monitoring rather than government oversight.
The agreement lacks enforcement details, leaving OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's goal of preventing "bad things" unaddressed by the administration. At an Andreessen Horowitz event, PitchBook's Kyle Stanford highlighted a $1 trillion U.S. defense budget, with $13.5 billion earmarked for autonomous systems and AI, driving record capital into defense tech.
“Fear and unclear rules stymie AI safety work.”
A day after the Andreessen Horowitz gathering, three OpenAI researchers posted that they had been fired, stating "fear and unclear rules stymie AI safety work." Separately, David Robinson, a leader on the OpenAI safety team, also departed the company.
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