The federal government's scientific data and computing power will help feed the artificial intelligence boom under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump.

The Nov. 24 executive order creates the Genesis Mission, which the Trump administration describes as one of the nation’s largest “marshalling of federal scientific resources.”

Administration officials said AI companies will get access to scientific data sets held by the government, which operates 17 National Laboratories through the Department of Energy. The Labs conduct cutting-edge research and have some of the world’s most advanced supercomputers.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the goal is to harness AI for “scientific discovery.”

“And to do that, you need the data sets that are contained across our National Labs,” Wright said, adding: “This will drive an incredible increase in the pace of scientific discovery and innovation.”

The order also directs the government to create a computing platform for integrating AI with the National Labs infrastructure, and to establish a set of priorities for scientific discovery, according to a White House official.

The order comes amid a massive wave of AI investment, with tech companies devoting huge funds to developing AI models and the infrastructure needed to support them.

The companies need data sets to train their models. The federal data represents another source.

It comes with concerns about accessing copyrighted or sensitive material that could have national security implications. Controls will be put in place to protect such data, an official said.

After a once-cool relationship with Silicon Valley, Trump has been embraced by many tech leaders in his second term, and the president has taken a favorable approach to the industry, promoting cryptocurrencies, warning foreign countries against adopting tech regulations, and pushing a plan for American dominance in artificial intelligence while dropping former President Joe Biden's AI restrictions.

The White House also was considering an executive order that would seek to preempt state laws on artificial intelligence through lawsuits and by withholding federal funds, but has put that order on hold, according to Reuters.

Trump hosted a Sept. 4 dinner at the White House that included a who’s who of the tech world elite.

Contributing: Joey Garrison, Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump signs order harnessing federal resources for AI boom

Reporting by Zac Anderson, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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