U.S. crypto and AI czar David Sacks warns that the greatest danger posed by artificial intelligence isn’t a Terminator-style uprising, but an Orwellian future in which AI surveils citizens and manipulates the flow of information.
Speaking on Monday’s episode of The Ben & Marc Show, the a16z podcast, Sacks discussed the Trump administration’s stance on regulating crypto and AI.
He criticized the previous Biden administration and “blue states” such as California and Colorado for what he called overly aggressive AI consumer protection laws targeting “algorithmic discrimination.”
According to Sacks, excessive regulation risks shaping AI systems to reflect the ideological leanings of those in power—allowing governments to use AI to twist information and suppress dissenting perspectives.
“What we’re really talking about is Orwellian AI,” Sacks said. “We’re talking about AI that lies to you, distorts answers, and rewrites history in real time to serve the political agenda of whoever holds power.”
“On top of that you’ve got the surveillance issue. Where AI is gonna know everything about you. It’s gonna kind of be your personal assistant, and so it’s kind of the perfect tool for the government to monitor and control you. And to me, that is by far the biggest risk of AI.”
Sacks also stressed that accountability should fall on those who misuse AI technology, not on the tools themselves or the companies that build them. He argued that excessive regulation would stifle innovation and be nearly impossible to enforce, since developers can’t predict every possible use of AI. Existing laws, he added, already provide mechanisms to address misuse, such as anti-discrimination statutes.
“Discrimination is already illegal,” Sacks said. “If a business uses AI in a way that violates those laws, we can hold that business accountable—we don’t need to punish the toolmaker.”
Crypto vs. AI Regulation
While Sacks advocated for a lighter regulatory touch on AI to encourage innovation and keep the U.S. competitive, he said the Trump administration takes the opposite stance toward crypto. In that space, he explained, the focus is on building clear, consistent rules to help the industry grow.
“With AI, the question is ‘how do we unleash innovation,’” Sacks said. “With crypto, it’s more about ‘how do we create regulatory certainty.’”
