Larry Summers was the U.S. Treasury Secretary from 2009 to 2017 and a high-level adviser to Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. He has been a Democrat all his life and is still cautiously optimistic that President-elect Donald Trump and his donor and adviser Elon Musk could help the U.S. economy.
When asked what advice he would give to the next president, Summers said that the government should focus on getting rid of things that get in the way of new ideas.
Summers said at the FinRegLab AI conference in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, “We need to be able to build, baby, build in the United States.”
He said that building data centers, energy production facilities, and electricity transport systems to help power the AI revolution and new green technologies was too hard because of too many problems.
“These could be complicated and dangerous technologies, and the government needs to, not because the law says so, but because it’s the right thing to do, set up close connections where there are real experts in the government who are closely watching and following developments” in the field, he said.
Summers said that one of the biggest risks to the U.S. economy is that the government and other organizations won’t be able to move forward and change in ways that support new technologies like AI.
He also said that Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla TSLA -0.03% and owner of the social media site X, could choose to be a good influence on the new administration. Musk said that he is “watching with fascination and considerable alarm” as Trump puts together his cabinet and plans a new course for the U.S. government.
Summers said that it is “too hard to give a simple answer” to the question of whether Musk’s close proximity to Trump is a good thing.
Summers said, “That’s like asking if rain is good for New England.” “Some rain is good for New England, but not too much.”
He also said that Musk’s work has made it easier for Americans to explore space, which is a “stunning thing” and good for the business and national security.
“Has Musk’s every political and cultural stance been in line with my idea of what is best for the country?” Summers replied, “I’m afraid not.” “The government needs to find a fine line between using the private sector’s knowledge, experience, and strength while also not giving in to the private sector.”
