Trump delays AI security executive order, saying language ‘could have been a blocker’
Source: TechCrunch
Image Credits: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images
Posted: 10:30 AM PDT · May 21, 2026
President Donald Trump has delayed signing an executive order that would allow the government to evaluate AI models before they’re released.
“I didn’t like certain aspects of it,” Trump told the White House press pool. “We’re leading China, we’re leading everybody, and I don’t want to do anything that’s going to get in the way of that leading.”
Reason for the delay
The unofficial reason cited is that not enough tech CEOs could make it to Washington, D.C. on short notice, according to several reports:
And, as noted, an executive‑order signing without a photo op would be unusual.
What the executive order would have required
The anticipated order would have tasked the Office of the National Cyber Director and other agencies with developing a process to evaluate AI models for security before their release. This response follows concerns raised by the release of Anthropic’s Mythos and OpenAI’s GPT‑5.5 Cyber, both capable of quickly finding and exploiting security vulnerabilities.
Key sticking point
According to CNN, a major issue in the draft language was a proposed requirement for AI companies to share advanced models with the government 14 to 90 days before launch. Trump said he was worried that this language “could have been a blocker.”