Trump AI Plan Omits Role Of Immigration And Foreign-Born Talent
The Trump administration's AI plan omits the role of U.S. immigration policy in providing American companies access to talent in cutting-edge fields. The plan does not mention immigrants or international students, even though they compose a significant portion of America's researchers and entrepreneurs in artificial intelligence. The ability of U.S. universities to educate students and conduct research on AI is also not discussed. The administration's plan disregards the recommendations of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, which, in 2021, called for liberalizing U.S. immigration policy because of the central role of human capital in AI. The new AI plan does not mention efforts to encourage more U.S. students to study in AI-related fields, instead singling out jobs for electricians and 'advanced HVAC technicians.' The authors of the plan avoided any statements that would conflict with the Trump administration's policies aimed at restricting immigrants and international students.
The Lack Of Immigration Or Education Recommendations In The AI Action Plan
On July 23, 2025, the White House released the Trump administration's AI Action Plan, which was called for in Executive Order 14179. The plan contains policy recommendations that businesses support, including a light touch on federal AI regulations, discouraging states from enacting intrusive AI regulations and a pledge to streamline permitting for building data centers and power generation. It also contains recommendations on exporting AI to allies and partners, promoting open-source AI and building scientific datasets.
The AI plan contains a glaring omission: The role of talented U.S.-born and foreign-born individuals in researching, developing and innovating in AI fields. The 23-page report gives the impression that artificial intelligence develops spontaneously and requires mostly data centers, power generation and occasional maintenance. The plan includes no mention of higher education, U.S. students, international students or the immigration of talented individuals to work in AI.
The only occupations the plan singles out are jobs in infrastructure that do not require a college degree. 'To build the infrastructure needed to power America's AI future, we must also invest in the workforce that will build, operate, and maintain it—including roles such as electricians, advanced HVAC technicians, and a host of other high-paying occupations,' according to the plan. While important, it seems unlikely that America's place in the world on artificial intelligence rests on producing enough Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning technicians, nor is the training of such individuals usually considered a federal responsibility.
The Trump administration's policies toward universities, international students and immigrants posed a dilemma for the authors of the AI plan. How could they recommend policies that, while sensible from an AI perspective, would be the opposite of the administration's other policies?
The Trump administration has threatened the existence of Harvard, one of America's top research universities and removed research funding from several other higher education institutions. Trump officials attempted to deport thousands of international students for minor offenses, banned the entry of students to attend Harvard and stated an intention to end Optional Practical Training and STEM OPT, which economists say would be a significant blow to attracting world-class talent. An upcoming H-1B rule is expected to disadvantage international students who hope to gain H-1B petitions and build a career in the United States.
Additional backstory helps explain the plan's omissions. In December 2024, Laura Loomer attacked Sriram Krishnan, now a senior policy adviser for AI at the White House, for past favorable comments about high-skilled immigration. Elon Musk defended Krishnan and stated his strong support for H-1B visas. After days of controversy, Donald Trump came down on Musk's side, despite his administration's restrictive first-term policies toward H-1B visas. Although Musk provided significant financial support to Trump's presidential election campaign, the two men have fallen out, and it's unclear whether past positive statements by Trump and Musk on H-1B visas mean anything today.
In October 2023, the Biden administration issued an executive order on artificial intelligence. The non-immigration parts of the AI executive order were criticized as potentially leading to excessive regulation. However, businesses appreciated the immigration measures, which directed the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security to enact policies 'to attract and retain talent in AI and other critical and emerging technologies in the United States economy.'
Favorable immigration policies resulted from the Biden executive order. Earlier guidance, issued in January 2022, proved of practical assistance in attracting and retaining high-skilled talent. Approvals for O-1A visas for individuals of 'extraordinary ability' and national interest waivers for employment-based green cards rose significantly after the guidance.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang delivers a keynote address during the Nvidia GTC Artificial Intelligence ... More Conference at SAP Center on March 18, 2024 in San Jose, California. (Photo by)
The Immigration Recommendations Of The National Security Commission On Artificial Intelligence
Research shows that immigrants and international students are vital to America's present and future development of AI. 'Immigrants have founded or cofounded nearly two-thirds (65% or 28 of 43) of the top AI companies in the United States, and 70% of full-time graduate students in fields related to artificial intelligence are international students,' according to a National Foundation for American Policy study, which I authored. 'Seventy-seven percent of the leading U.S.-based AI companies were founded or cofounded by immigrants or the children of immigrants. Forty-two percent (18 of 43) of the top U.S.-based AI companies had a founder who came to America as an international student.'
A report from the White House Council of Economic Advisers published at the end of the Biden administration states, 'Between 40% and 60% of AI-related master's degrees have been awarded to non-U.S. citizens in the last 5 years. For Ph.D.'s, this share has been above 50% since 2003, most recently 59% in 2022.' (The figure may be higher if one defines 'AI-related' more broadly.)
The economists who authored the study concluded that reforms 'could help increase the supply of top talent in the United States.'
'Immigration obstacles often prevent capable workers—including many graduates of U.S. institutions—from moving to or staying in the United States and supplying their talents in the U.S. workforce,' according to the economists' report. 'Among non-U.S. citizen AI Ph.D.'s who left the United States, over half cited immigration issues as relevant to their decision to leave.' The report notes 60% of foreign Ph.D. recipients in the U.S. say they have trouble staying compared to 12% of Ph.D. holders in other countries.
The bipartisan National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence released a final report to Congress in 2021. The commission recommended liberalizing U.S. immigration laws to allow the United States to attract and retain AI talent. In a section titled 'Strengthen AI talent through immigration,' the report concluded: 'Nations that can successfully attract and retain highly skilled individuals gain strategic and economic advantages over competitors. Human capital advantages are particularly significant in the field of AI, where demand for talent far exceeds supply. Highly skilled immigrants accelerate American innovation, improve entrepreneurship and create jobs.'
While the Trump administration has tried to block more Chinese students from the United States, the AI commission recommended the opposite approach. "We looked at the question of how important are Chinese researchers for the AI effort, in our report, and it turns out the Chinese researchers are the number one authors on the key papers,' said former Google CEO and Chairman Eric Schmidt at a Congressional hearing. 'If you were to get rid of all of them . . . you will, in fact, hurt America's AI leadership.' Schmidt co-chaired the AI commission.
The Trump AI plan discusses the importance of AI, biotechnology, defense and cybersecurity. The Department of Defense, in its Fiscal Year 2020 Industrial Capabilities Report, cited NFAP research and highlighted the need for a significantly larger number of individuals to work in software and other STEM fields in America.
A recent Congressional advisory commission concluded that changing U.S. immigration laws would allow America to increase the number of biotechnology researchers. The biotech commission praised international students but warned about the shortcomings of America's immigration policies. 'These highly educated and credentialed biotechnologists have access to American research and intellectual property, they often generate pathbreaking inventions and they often go on to establish valuable startups,' according to the final report. 'But many do so outside of the United States, largely because U.S. immigration policy forces them to leave. This failure puts the United States at a strategic disadvantage.'
Eighty-three percent of individuals with Ph.D.'s in computer and information sciences in the U.S. who perform research and development as a major work activity are foreign-born, according to an NFAP analysis. The foreign-born share is 80% in electrical and computer engineering.
Research, reports and commissions conclude that foreign-born talent is crucial to America's AI present and future. The just-released AI Action Plan indicates that recommendations coming from the executive branch are unlikely to conflict with the Trump administration's immigration policies.
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