Trump AI Czar: Treasury Secretary Bessent Tipped as Favorite

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents Trump AI Czar: Treasury Secretary Bessent Tipped as Favorite.

US AI policy could soon be consolidated directly at the Treasury Department. The tech portal Golem.de cites a report from the Semafor newsletter: according to it, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the leading candidate for the post of AI czar under President Donald Trump.

What this means for you: If Trump actually pulls off this personnel move, the AI strategy of the world's most powerful economic nation will move to the desk of the top financial official – and thus closer to economic policy than to pure science policy.

What has been officially confirmed so far: nothing at all. The Semafor report, picked up by Golem.de, is currently the only concrete source for the personnel decision.

What is known so far

According to Semafor, a concrete name has moved to the forefront for the post of an "AI Czar" – German: KI-Beauftragter. The report contains no confirmation from the White House or from Trump himself.

When the decision will be made, what powers the post would have, and which exact tasks it would entail all remain unclear.

Who is Scott Bessent?

Scott Bessent heads the US Treasury Department. In this role, he is responsible for, among other things, the federal budget, subsidies, and sanctions.

What remains open

Neither the post itself nor the personnel decision has been officially confirmed so far. Semafor says it is citing informed sources. When and in what form Trump will make the decision remains to be seen.

Bottom Line

As of now, the personnel decision rests on a single, well-placed newspaper report: according to Semafor, Scott Bessent, the US Treasury Secretary, is supposedly the favorite for the AI czar post under Trump. Official confirmation from Washington is pending.