The Trump administration has appointed the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to oversee consumer protection and enforce laws related to artificial intelligence.
Joe Simonson, the FTC’s director of public affairs, shared that Chairman Ferguson feels honored to be selected by President Trump to collaborate with a skilled team to maintain U.S. leadership in Super Intelligence (SI) while also ensuring the protection of American citizens.
Supporters of AI argue that the president’s choice of the FTC demonstrates that the administration has the power to provide consumer safety and protection.
“President Trump is showing that it’s feasible to sustain American prominence in the Super Intelligence sector while also safeguarding consumers,” stated a spokesperson from the Innovation Council.
“Contrary to what some may think, the federal government already has numerous tools to hold SI companies responsible for their actions. The FTC chairman will make sure these tools are utilized in favor of the American public,” the spokesperson added.
The White House directed inquiries to the FTC for further comments.
The FTC was established in 1914 under the Federal Trade Commission Act, with a mission to protect consumers and promote fair competition as noted on their official website.
According to a White House official, the task force will interact with leading model developers and other SI firms, consumer protection organizations, and various stakeholders to guide its efforts.
“The Super Intelligence Force is prepared to ensure that the Accord is implemented and that the U.S. continues to lead in SI for the benefit of Americans,” the official remarked.
Key members of the Super Intelligence Force include Vice President JD Vance, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, War Department Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Krastios, among others, as reported by Politico.
The undersecretary of the War Department, Emil Michael, who serves as the task force’s vice chair, will develop protocols for AI companies to report hacks and other cybersecurity matters to the government.
The FTC has previously conducted investigations into safety practices in AI.
Recently, the FTC issued civil investigative demands to major AI labs such as Anthropic and OpenAI, requesting internal records related to security incidents and safety measures. They are also seeking copies of advertising and user privacy policies from these companies.
Businesses must be honest with their customers. When AI companies steer AI outputs to serve a political agenda and conceal this fact from customers, they may be breaking the law. If an AI system is designed to suppress accuracy in favor of politics, or anything else, consumers have a right to know. https://t.co/PkQsrs9zfc
— Andrew Ferguson (@AFergusonFTC) July 1, 2026
An OpenAI spokesperson emphasized the importance of safety while improving models that assist users daily, stating, “We will engage constructively with the FTC.”
The FTC’s probe may extend to other AI firms and plans to gather information from METR, the research group that looked into a breach at Hugging Face, a major platform for AI model sharing, as noted by the BBC.
Ferguson has suggested that AI developers should be held accountable for their agents’ actions, as stated in a recent interview with Reuters. He indicated that the FTC could take measures against companies that fail to disclose security breaches.
“If someone instructs a tool, and the tool complies, it doesn’t seem right to just focus on the tool,” he posed as a rhetorical question.
The formation of this task force comes as Trump signed an AI document purported to promote a regulatory framework that is light and considered “morally binding” when interacting with tech leaders, according to a post from the president on Truth Social.
In earlier remarks in October, Trump praised the technology sector’s capacity for “tremendous self-policing,” according to CNBC.
