The question isn’t whether artificial intelligence will transform our economy, but rather who will control that transformation: Americans or a handful of tech titans entangled with Beijing and other adversarial nations? But the stakes aren’t just economic. They’re about protecting American families’ livelihoods, privacy, and children’s futures.
That’s why OpenAI’s latest appeal to the Trump administration matters. In a letter to White House science chief Michael Kratsios, the company urged Washington to expand Chips Act incentives to cover AI data centers, hardware producers, and grid materials, arguing that large-scale AI infrastructure is essential to the U.S. national interest. The plea underscores that the future of AI will be determined by the policies that govern it.
President Donald Trump has already set the nation on a bold course. In the same spirit with which John F. Kennedy vowed to send Americans to the moon, he launched “America’s AI Action Plan“ and signed Executive Order 14179, “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence,” to ensure this revolution is led at home. Because when America leads, our workers prosper, our schools prepare the next generation for high-tech jobs, and our families share in the benefits of innovation.
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AI holds extraordinary promise, but that promise can only be fully realized through open competition. When just a few corporations dominate the market, innovation slows and choice evaporates. That hurts small businesses, family budgets, and the ability of parents and young workers to access affordable technology. American AI suffers when there’s favoritism for tech giants, particularly so when they ideologically discriminate and work hand in glove with China.
For example, studies show that Microsoft collaborates with the CCP authoritarian state to censor content on its search engine in China, partners with companies affiliated with the Chinese military, researches projects linked to surveillance technology used to identify Uyghurs, and shares top talent with DeepSeek, a Chinese AI outfit that rivals American companies.
In addition, U.S. regulators are looking into Microsoft’s cloud business for anti-competitive practices driving up costs for users, including our federal government, whose costs are paid by America’s taxpaying families. Every inflated government tech contract means less money in the pockets of hardworking people. The Federal Trade Commission likewise has opened a wide-ranging investigation into Microsoft.
Moreover, as recently as this year, Microsoft was actively promoting and even funding NewsGuard, which touts itself as an “apolitical” “news rating” organization but described conservative outlets as “unreliable” while labeling their accurate reporting as misinformation.
Microsoft is not alone. Other Big Tech names you know engage in similar practices. That’s why a few mega corporations must not dictate how our information economy is built. And that is why the Trump administration rightly continues to champion a framework in which competition flourishes for workers, innovators, and everyday people who depend on fair markets to support their families.
It should additionally direct the FTC to pursue investigations in the AI sector aggressively, monitor entanglements with foreign adversaries, and ensure dominant firms cannot misuse market power to pile up advantage while shutting out newcomers. Tech giants such as Microsoft shouldn’t get a free pass from enforcement actions when their practices harm consumers and fair competition simply because they’re leading the AI race.
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At the same time, federal procurement policies can prioritize home-grown companies, and tax incentives should favor American-based research and development. That means better-paying jobs for American parents and more stable futures for their children. Supply chains tied to hostile regimes should be denied access to federal contracts.
Ultimately, America First AI is about protecting our homes, our communities, and the promise that every family can thrive in the digital age.
Terry Schilling is the president of American Principles Project. Follow: @Schilling1776
