U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday released his “AI Action Plan,” as promised in a January executive order.
The plan outlines what could be the future of artificial intelligence for the United States at a critical point in the technology’s growth pattern and adoption rates. In the plan, Trump’s administration makes it clear that its main goal is rapid growth of AI systems, largely in an effort to compete with China on the development of the technology. It encourages standing up data centers, despite the environmental risks; pushes for further deregulation of the technology and more.
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“America’s AI Action Plan has three pillars: innovation, infrastructure and international diplomacy and security,” the authors, which include David Sacks, Trump’s AI and crypto czar, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Michael Kratsios, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, wrote in the plan.
Within those three pillars, the administration had quite a bit to say about its vision for state AI regulations, the future of work and America’s potential to up its game on manufacturing robots and other AI-adjacent technologies.
State AI regulations
Trump and his allies have been continued proponents of deregulating AI to encourage faster growth; the plan shows the president’s ambitions have not ceased.
In an early version of Trump’s now-passed megabill, Republicans had proposed a moratorium on state AI laws, which would have prevented states from creating and enforcing AI laws for 10 years. Proponents cited a need to allow technological innovation to grow, rather than being stifled by patchwork legislation. Ultimately, the Senate axed that provision from the final version of the Big, Beautiful Bill, which meant states continued to carry the authority to propose and codify AI laws that serve their immediate needs.
But it seems the administration wasn’t satisfied with that resolution; in the plan, Trump and his allies said the U.S. needs to “remove red tap and onerous regulation.”
“The federal government should not allow AI-related federal funding to be directed toward states with burdensome AI regulations that waste these funds, but should also not interfere with states’ rights to pass prudent laws that are not unduly restrictive to innovation,” the plan states.
The document lacks details on how states’ regulations would be judged, but some blue states, like California and New York, have already started passing laws protecting workers’ rights against AI—with support from unions and laborers.
That could see the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) required to “consider a state’s AI regulatory climate when making funding decisions and limit funding if the state’s AI regulatory regimes may hinder the effectiveness of that funding or award.”
In a speech at an event called Winning the AI Race on Wednesday evening, Trump said regulation could squash American companies’ chance at beating competitors.
“If you regulate them too much, you kill the source of American genius and technological power,” Trump said, noting that former President Joe Biden’s approach to AI would have prevented further growth for AI companies.
“When you’re allowed to be free of horrible, foolish regulation—and you’re going to have regulation, but it’s going to be sensible, smart regulation—there’s nobody who’s going to beat you,” he continued.
The plan also recommends that federal agencies should be able to “take appropriate action” on any federal regulations that could stymie AI innovation or adoption. That could extend to existing laws that weren’t created with AI in mind.
On the state side, what’s interesting about the policing of AI legislation is that the plan later lays out recommendations related to providing funding to upskill and reskill workers impacted by AI—but doesn’t make it clear how existing laws might stymie such funding.
The future of work
Throughout the plan, the Trump administration attempts to tout its “worker-first AI agenda.”
“By accelerating productivity and creating entirely new industries, AI can help America build an economy that delivers more pathways to economic opportunity for American workers. But it will also transform how work gets done across all industries and occupations, demanding a serious workforce response to help workers navigate that transition,” the plan states. “The Trump administration will advance a priority set of actions to expand AI literacy and skills development, continuously evaluate AI’s impact on the labor market and pilot new innovations to rapidly retrain and help workers thrive in an AI-driven economy.”
The plan goes on to say that some employers could receive tax benefits for offering AI training at scale if its efforts are pointed at “preserving jobs for American workers.”
What’s more, the administration has stated it has an interest in funding “rapid retraining for individuals impacted by AI-related job displacement,” with states leading the way on identifying these workers and using allocated funds to aid workers.
It’s unclear how such funds would be distributed, particularly against the backdrop of the administration’s commentary about withholding funds to states that have restrictive AI laws in place.
New York, for instance, has put several laws into place relative to AI’s role in specific professions, including the Fashion Workers Act, which aims to protect models and other workers from AI-based exploitation.
But Governor Kathy Hochul has also proposed—and now, quietly implemented—voluntary mechanisms for reporting AI-influenced layoffs under the state’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) that could be one way to track the type of job losses Trump’s plan speaks about.
It’s unclear if the blue state, which has a mechanism for tracking technology’s influence on job loss, would still be eligible to receive funding for retraining since it has started proposing and implementing AI-focused regulations.
Cam Myers, CEO of automated apparel manufacturing company CreateMe Technologies, said that as reskilling and upskilling plans continue to take shape, apparel purveyors and manufacturers should be prepared to help their employees keep pace with emerging technologies.
“Fashion and apparel must be part of any national strategy around AI and workforce development. While often overlooked in tech policy conversations, this industry employs millions globally and still relies heavily on outdated, manual processes,” Myers told Sourcing Journal. “As automation and AI enter the space, we have an opportunity to transform traditional manufacturing jobs into more technical, creative, and digitally enabled roles.”
Outlook on manufacturing robotics and AI-adjacent technologies
As part of the AI Action Plan, the administration states its intent to amp up its manufacturing prowess for AI and its complementary technologies, including robotics, which have become a key part of some manufacturers and third-party logistics players’ toolsets in recent years.
“AI, robotics and related technologies create opportunities for novel capabilities in manufacturing and logistics,” the report noted. “The federal government should prioritize investment in these emerging technologies and usher in a new industrial renaissance.”
Two categories of particular interest include drones and robotics, both of which have the power to significantly change the logistics landscape in the years ahead. Myers said that, if the Trump administration works to bring domestic apparel manufacturing back in an at-scale way, easier access to factory robots could positively impact the sector.
“Increased domestic production of robotics and automation equipment could meaningfully reduce friction for apparel brands trying to modernize,” Myers said. “Local access to these technologies would shorten development cycles, reduce reliance on global shipping delays and improve collaboration between innovators and manufacturers. That’s especially critical in apparel, where the pace of trends demands more agile production.”
