Sources at NIST are preparing for mass firings that would severely undermine the AI regulator. Here's what that means.

After reversing a Biden-era executive order on AI regulation and firing staff across several government agencies, the Trump administration is gearing up to make cuts to the US AI Safety Institute (AISI) next. 

On Wednesday, Axios reported that probationary employees at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which houses AISI, are "bracing to be fired imminently." Sources told Axios they are preparing for 497 roles to be cut, which they believe will leave the AISI "gutted."

The AISI was created to oversee and conduct AI model testing and partner with developers on regulation efforts. AISI signed agreements with AI companies including Anthropic and OpenAI on safety and research initiatives and created a national security task force.

The cuts will impact more than just AI safety and regulation. The 497 roles also span semiconductor production efforts. Axios reports that the cuts will include "74 postdocs, 57% of CHIPS staff focused on incentives," and "67% of CHIPS staff focused on R&D," referring to the 2022 government "CHIPS for America" initiative to ramp up chip development in the US.

Axios notes those losses would amount to "most staff" working on the CHIPS initiative -- a somewhat confusing choice given the bullishness the Trump administration has maintained about gaining an AI advantage over China, not to mention the program's national security drivers.

News of the anticipated firings come shortly after the Trump administration left AISI staff out of its delegation for last week's AI Action Summit in Paris -- which focused heavily on AI safety and security -- and just weeks after AISI director Elizabeth Kelly stepped down, ostensibly due to political pressure. For those reasons, the cuts won't come as a surprise given Trump's AI agenda, which de-emphasizes safety and regulation in the name of "AI dominance."