President Trump’s AI regulation accord with top tech CEOs appears ‘purely voluntary’

President Trump's agreement with leading technology executives on artificial intelligence regulation looks to be "purely voluntary," according to NBC News coverage on Meet the Press on Sept. 30, 2026. Tech leaders signed the self-regulation pact at the White House, and NBC News artificial intelligence reporter Jared Perlo describes it as "morally binding." Trump has said tech companies will "police themselves" amid AI safety warnings.

Correspondents Monica Alba and Julie Tsirkin joined the program to explain how the White House and Capitol Hill are each handling the question of AI rules as the midterm elections draw near. The segment was presented as a look at how the administration and lawmakers are approaching oversight of the technology before voters go to the polls.

Calls for congressional action are also surfacing. Lawmakers are pushing a bipartisan bill intended to "make sure Congress gets off the sidelines" on AI guardrails, and independent Senate candidates have branded Congress "reckless" for not passing such protections. Separately, an AI expert described OpenAI's pause on its latest model as "responsible," noting that the field is moving at "incredible velocity." In Ohio, Senate candidates have clashed over data centers, and voters are voicing frustration with both parties. Elsewhere in NBC's coverage, Trump says the U.S. will "win" the Iran war "very soon."

Summarized by PolitiKool from NBC News’s reporting. Read the full story at NBC News →