EPA's Zeldin plans to 'meet this moment' to dominate Artificial Intelligence

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin says the Trump administration has an artificial intelligence action plan to be more dominant as the field gets bigger. 

"The Trump EPA is pursuing permitting reform, advancing cooperative federalism, and taking any other step possible to speed up projects on data center and AI development," Zeldin wrote on the social media platform, X. "The mandate from the American people calls on us to do everything in our power to meet this moment."

The U.S. is in a race to reap broad benefits

On Wednesday, Zeldin published an op-ed in The Hill where he said there was a plan proposed by President Donald Trump called "America's AI Action Plan."

"The United States is in a race to achieve global dominance in artificial intelligence (AI)," the published action plan reads. "Whoever has the largest AI ecosystem will set global AI standards and reap broad economic and military benefits."

Different aspects of the plan include deregulation, cutting red tape and investing in AI-enabled science. 

"America’s AI Action Plan has three pillars: innovation, infrastructure, and international diplomacy and security," the plan reads.

"The United States needs to innovate faster and more comprehensively than our competitors in the development and distribution of new AI technology across every field, and dismantle unnecessary regulatory barriers that hinder the private sector in doing so."

Streamline rulemaking, environmental reviews and monitoring

Zeldin said in his op-ed that he met with AI executives and developers at data centers to discuss the AI action plan. He said that at the EPA, the agency is looking to use AI to train internal systems in order to summarize policy proposals and public comments.

"Tasks that previously required months can now take minutes, streamlining rulemaking, environmental reviews and monitoring while saving tax dollars," Zeldin wrote. 

Regarding the removal of the red tape, Trump has rescinded an executive order from former President Joe Biden that burdened AI research with regulations. "AI is far too important to smother in bureaucracy at this early stage, whether at the state or Federal level," the plan reads. 

The plan also says that "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 also discusses investing in biosecurity, as the administration believes AI will play a big role in finding cures for diseases. 

"AI will unlock nearly limitless potential in biology: cures for new diseases, novel industrial use cases, and more," the action plan reads. "At the same time, it could create new pathways for malicious actors to synthesize harmful pathogens and other biomolecules."