‘He really gets it…’, Sam Altman praises Donald Trump’s understanding of AI

Sam Altman

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Tuesday offered rare public praise for President Donald Trump, crediting him with a clear understanding of the strategic importance of artificial intelligence on both economic and geopolitical fronts.

Speaking at a live Hard Fork podcast hosted by The New York Times in San Francisco, Altman said, “I think he really gets it,” referring to Trump’s grasp of AI’s long-term impact. “He really understands the importance of leadership in this technology,” he added.

Altman, 40, has been actively engaging with the president in recent months. Just a day after Trump’s inauguration in January, Altman stood behind him in the Roosevelt Room of the White House as the president unveiled Stargate — a $100 billion AI infrastructure initiative backed by OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank. Trump called it the “largest AI infrastructure project by far in history.”

During Tuesday’s conversation, Altman reinforced that message, saying Trump recognises the “need to build a lot of infrastructure” to support AI’s growth, and understands the “potential for economic transformation” and America’s positioning on the global AI stage.

While Altman has previously met with leaders across the political spectrum, his alignment with Trump’s AI agenda signals a pragmatic approach to policy engagement — particularly at a time when both regulation and innovation are heating up. As the race to build AI infrastructure accelerates, OpenAI appears keen to remain in lockstep with the current US administration’s ambitions.