Trump Claims Criminal Power Over AI Firms As Stocks Slip

President Donald Trump posted a social media message claiming his administration holds significant criminal and regulatory power over artificial intelligence companies. He argued that the industry needs no outside guardrails beyond his own oversight. The statement came right as Monday trading opened, arriving in a market that was already selling off artificial intelligence stocks.

The broader market felt the pressure as the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.85 percent and the S&P 500 fell 0.57 percent. Major chipmakers and infrastructure providers took the hardest hits, with Nvidia, AMD, and Intel sliding. SoftBank Group also saw steep losses in Tokyo trading. Investors watched closely because the artificial intelligence sector relies heavily on continuous high spending from major labs and hardware suppliers.

The remarks followed an essay by Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei, who urged major labs to slow down development on their most powerful models. Industry leaders Sam Altman and Elon Musk backed the call for caution. Trump dismissed these safety pushes and criticized the developers, signaling that Washington plans to let development run at full speed without new legislative brakes.

Market participants are now left to decide if presidential backing acts as a safety floor or a regulatory ceiling for the sector. With geopolitical tensions and rising oil prices also weighing on sentiment, traders should keep a close eye on upcoming political meetings and hardware spending reports to see where tech stocks head next.