Open letter to US President Donald Trump: Carpe diem - opinion

An open letter to US President Donald Trump argues that while America must win the AI race, it must also establish guardrails to prevent catastrophic misuse. The author, Jeffrey Kahn, draws parallels to Cold War nuclear treaties and warns that AI can compress expertise and lower the cost of capability for hostile actors. He urges Trump to use the UN General Assembly stage to lead international cooperation on AI safety, accelerating both capability and control.

Jeffrey Kahn, a fourth-generation American living abroad, writes an open letter to US President Donald Trump arguing that while America must win the artificial intelligence race, it must simultaneously establish guardrails to prevent catastrophic misuse. Kahn draws a parallel to the Cold War nuclear era, noting that the US and Soviet Union competed while negotiating treaties like SALT and START, recognizing that technological superiority alone does not eliminate catastrophic danger. He warns that AI is an extraordinary force multiplier that can compress expertise and time, lowering the cost of capability for hostile actors. Kahn cites recent disclosures from Anthropic illustrating how Iranian state-aligned actors have used AI for influence operations, surveillance, and what they called 'cognitive warfare,' and for developing ballistic missiles. He argues that the answer is not to slow down but to accelerate capability, control, and international cooperation. Kahn urges Trump to use the UN General Assembly stage to lead this conversation, noting that America's technological lead gives it the leverage to set the rules.