In front of a stunned-looking audience at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced he wasn’t going to let any “globalist scheme” ruin the artificial intelligence party. |
Brushing away growing concerns that the technology could run amok and eliminate humanity within a decade—and unprecedented calls for greater regulation from CEOs of the world’s leading AI companies—Trump vowed that the United States was going all in on essentially unregulated technology. |
It wasn’t just a policy statement in support of laissez-faire capitalism; it was a broadside aimed at his perceived enemies in the international community, among environmentalists and, most notably, in California. |
A new chapter in the Trump v. California showdown |
Late last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order doing almost the exact opposite of what Trump proposed. |
Newsom’s order would require AI companies, many of which including Antrhopic and OpenAI are based in the Bay Area, to embed independent, human monitors in their labs to try to make sure the models don’t race out of control. It also calls for a panel of experts to develop a “kill switch” to prevent the technology from going dangerously off the rails. |
While California can’t make laws governing the behavior of companies outside its borders, it is the fourth largest economy in the world, so it probably has enough pull to persuade companies to comply if they want to do business here. |
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US President Donald Trump (R) and Open AI CEO Sam Altman (L) react during a working lunch meeting of G7 members, partner countries, and artificial intelligence business leaders as part of the G7 summit, in Evian, eastern France, on June 17, 2026. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson / POOL ) |
Newsom’s decision marks a turnaround. He vetoed legislation that would have required companies establish such a switch only two years ago. Friday’s move arose from widespread concerns about AI, but it was also an obvious political grenade tossed in the direction of the oval office. |
“The federal government’s abject failure to create any form of meaningful AI oversight or accountability should alarm every American,” he wrote, “especially when AI CEOs themselves are begging for regulation.” |
Newsom and Trump taking diametrically opposed stances on an issue is nothing new; each has spent years claiming the other is an existential threat to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. |
But regulating AI presents Newsom—who is running for president about as aggressively as possible without a formal announcement—with an attractive way to define himself as liberal democracy’s standard bearer against an aging and increasingly unpopular incumbent. |
Nearly three-quarters of Americans are worried that artificial intelligence companies have not done enough to prevent the technology from causing serious harm, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday. |
All of which sets the stage for a fascinating culture-war showdown between Trump and the Golden State. |
Behind Newsom’s changing position |
Newsom is clearly a bit more in touch with the zeitgeist on this than the 80-year-old president, who recently compared AI to the rise of television and radio. |
During his rambling speech at the UN, he likened anyone who is concerned about AI to purveyors of “the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax,” the “Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine hoax” and those who believe in global warming. |
“From this point forward, all of United States documents, and hopefully the world’s, will be changed to use the much more accurate term “super” as opposed to artificial,” he announced. |
Connor Leahy, U.S. executive director of the nonprofit ControlAI, told my colleagues Dakota Smith and Queenie Wong last week that superintelligence, especially self-improving AI models, is exactly the thing to fear. “Once we achieve superintelligence, there’s kind of nothing we can do,” he said. |
That doesn’t scare Trump. “Welcome to the new world of superintelligence,” he announced yesterday, as if expecting the kind of applause he gets at his rallies. The room full of international diplomats remained silent. |
Maybe the robots were cheering. |
Top stories |
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L.A. Councilmember Nithya Raman, left and Mayor Karen Bass. (Los Angeles Times) |
Raman takes a big lead over Bass |
- Raman is favored by 39% of likely L.A. voters, compared with 28% for Bass, according to the latest Berkeley-L.A. Times poll, which also found that 33% of voters were undecided.
- It represented the strongest showing yet for Raman, who trailed Bass in almost every poll during the primary campaign and who came in second to Bass in the primary election.
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Mosquitoes are thriving in L.A.’s miserable humidity |
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Hurricane Polo intensifies off Mexico |
- Little rain is expected in Southern California, but forecasters warned that the Category 5 storm could bring more flooding to the region’s already battered coastline.
- Already this year, multiple counties and towns have declared local emergencies as a spell of powerful tropical storms from the Pacific generated high surf that eroded local beaches.
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More news |
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Commentary and opinion |
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Editor’s pick |
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Sebastian Marset allegedly smuggled tons of cocaine to Europe — but not a single gram to the U.S. Now, he’s challenging his federal prosecution, alleging misconduct by DEA agents and arguing his charges should be dropped for lack of jurisdiction. |
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More picks |
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Keep up with California |
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Things to do |
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The signature hamburger au poivre with mushroom and fried onion at Marée, a new Parisian-inspired wine bar in Pico-Robertson. (Stephanie Breijo/Los Angeles Times) |
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Today’s recipe |
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Pineapple tart made from a recipe by Michelle Huneven. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times) |
Michelle Huneven’s recipe for pineapple tart is inspired by tarte a l’ananas, which was on the menu during her visit to the Louvre’s cafe. The tart’s crust was barely there, just a buttery whisper under the fruit. The pineapple, thinly sliced, was caramelized in spots. Bake this easy and tasty pineapple dessert in a tart pan or go free-form for a rustic look. |
Question for you |
Where’s your favorite place to see fall colors in California? Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week. |
Photo of the day |
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Beachgoers roast marshmallows and enjoy the sunset at Dockweiler Beach. (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times) |
Games |
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Here’s today’s mini crossword, plus our other free, daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games. |
Have a great day, from the Essential California team |
Jack Dolan, investigative reporter
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters |
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com. |
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