AI Czar: Treasury Secretary Bessent reportedly Trump's favorite

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents AI Czar: Treasury Secretary Bessent reportedly Trump's favorite.

AI policy in the Treasury rather than the tech ministry – at least that's the idea behind a personnel decision picked up by Golem.de citing the US magazine Semafor. According to this, Scott Bessent, Treasury Secretary under US President Donald Trump, is considered the favorite for the post of AI Czar.

If Trump actually creates the role, the AI agenda moves closer to economic policy – with all the implications for chip exports, data center subsidies, and competition with China. The Treasury Department is already involved in all these areas. According to Semafor, whether it gets that far remains open.

So far only this is certain: from the reporters' perspective, the choice is likely to fall on the government's top money man. The Golem report leaves open which tasks – from research funding to export controls – would fall within the area of responsibility.

What's known so far – and what isn't

Confirmed: Scott Bessent serves as US Treasury Secretary under President Donald Trump. Semafor names him as the favorite for the AI Czar post. What remains unclear is whether Trump will actually create the position – and if so, how it will be shaped. Timeline and possible alternative candidates cannot be gleaned from the available reporting.

Why the choice is surprising – and what it would mean

AI policy was more strongly anchored in trade and science agencies under the previous administration. With an AI Czar in the Treasury Department, the focus would visibly shift: away from research and security policy, toward competitiveness, capital markets, and export rules. Trump had already hinted at exactly this shift during his first term.

Source and original report

The information comes from the US outlet Semafor and was picked up for the German-speaking market by Golem.de. You can find the full report at golem.de.