President Donald Trump is expected to name Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton as the White House’s artificial intelligence czar, a role Trump has also called “super intelligence,” according to sources who spoke to CNN, Axios, CBS News, and Reuters. The appointment has not been announced.
Two sources familiar with the discussion told CNN that Trump is expected to pick Clayton, and one said he could announce as early as Friday, October 2, 2026. Axios and Reuters reported the same Friday window. CBS, which first reported Clayton as the frontrunner, said a final decision is expected shortly. Across those accounts, Clayton is expected to keep his DNI post while taking on the second title.
A White House official told CNN, Axios, CBS, and Reuters that any personnel announcement will be announced directly by the President, and that any reporting until then is “baseless speculation.”
The timing follows Tuesday’s White House meeting with frontier AI executives and the voluntary Joint Commitment on Frontier Responsibilities. Shortly afterward, Trump told reporters he was “very close to making a decision” and would name an AI czar “over the next three or four days,” CNN reported. Trump had already told Axios that Clayton would be “a good idea” for the role.
Clayton was confirmed by the Senate in July 2026 to lead the U.S. intelligence community. He previously served as Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor and led the Securities and Exchange Commission for most of Trump’s first term. At his confirmation hearing he called AI a “game changer” that is “not only an opportunity but a threat,” adding, “When something’s both an opportunity and a threat, you better get your arms around it,” CNN reported.
David Sacks held the AI and cryptocurrency czar brief earlier in Trump’s second term until March 2026, when he reached his special government employee time limit, CNN and CBS reported. He now co-chairs the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Trump has favored a light regulatory touch and previously called fears over AI a “hoax,” CNN reported.
If confirmed, the pick would dual-hat the nation’s top intelligence officer on the White House AI brief. AI Tech Daily earlier covered reporting that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent could take the czar role and Trump’s later denial that Bessent would be AI czar. Until the President announces a name, the Clayton reporting remains attributed source expectation, not a completed appointment.