Washington’s Boldest AI Move Yet: Federal Preemption of State AI Laws and a New Tech Force to Power Government Innovation
Washington, D.C. — December 15, 2025
In the most consequential AI governance shift of the year, the U.S. federal government has simultaneously signaled a sweeping centralization of AI regulatory authority and a dramatic new effort to recruit tech talent to government service — moves that could reshape how artificial intelligence is governed, deployed, and controlled across the country.
A New Executive Order to Override State AI Laws
On December 11, 2025, President Donald Trump signed a major executive order — Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence — designed to preempt state AI regulations that the administration deems “cumbersome” or inconsistent with a unified national strategy.
Under the order:
- The Commerce Department and other agencies are instructed to identify state laws that conflict with federal goals and to challenge them through legal action or conditions on federal funding.
- A new AI Litigation Task Force within the DOJ will pursue suits against state and local AI regulations that the federal government believes exceed constitutional or regulatory bounds.
- Access to broadband deployment funds and other federal grants may be restricted for states enforcing AI laws the administration opposes — effectively using fiscal levers to influence state technology policy.
What triggered it? A wave of state AI laws — including Colorado’s strong algorithmic discrimination protections and California’s upcoming risk mitigation rules — alarmed federal officials who argue that a patchwork of 50 different regulatory systems will deter innovation and slow U.S. competitiveness in the global AI race.
Legal experts already predict major courtroom battles, with state attorneys general and technology advocates promising to challenge the order’s constitutionality.
Tech Talent Crisis Meets Government Reality: The U.S. Tech Force
Unrelated but equally dramatic, the White House also launched the United States Tech Force, a government-backed initiative to recruit roughly 1,000 engineers, AI specialists, and technologists for two-year federal roles.
Highlights of the program include:
- Salaries between $130,000–$195,000 and placements across key agencies including Defense, Labor, IRS, and more.
- Participation and training support from major tech companies such as Apple, Meta, Microsoft, AWS, Nvidia, and OpenAI.
- Opportunities for early-career talent and experienced professionals to bring industry experience directly into federal projects.
This initiative arrives after years of federal tech workforce shortages and follows high-profile closures of internal government tech teams — including the dismantling of 18F following social media pressure — leaving agencies scrambling for talent.
Why This Matters
These two developments — federal preemption of state AI laws and the Tech Force hiring campaign — signal a dramatic shift toward centralized control and operational competence in U.S. AI governance.
- For policymakers: This puts federal versus state authority at the center of tech regulation disputes, with implications for civil liberties, consumer protections, and innovation safeguards.
- For industry: A national policy framework could reduce compliance complexity but also constrain localized experimentation in AI risk mitigation.
- For the workforce: The government is attempting to compete with Silicon Valley for talent, a rare and ambitious effort with long-term implications for public-sector tech expertise.
What Comes Next
Expect:
- Legal challenges from states and civil rights advocates arguing the EO oversteps constitutional limits.
- Federal-state clashes in Congress and courts over AI regulatory authority.
- Intense recruitment and retention competition as the government tries to prove it can effectively leverage technical talent to build and govern critical AI infrastructure.
Stay tuned — this story is shaping into the defining policy and tech narrative of the last quarter of 2025.