In an exclusive statement to the New York Post, first lady Melania Trump has revealed her next official project: leading the Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge to inspire children and teachers to embrace AI technology and help accelerate innovation in the field.
She hopes to carve out a new role as the First Lady of Technology, combining her passion for children’s well-being with her tech-forward vision, as demonstrated by her advocacy for the “Take It Down Act,” which combats AI-generated deepfakes, and her work on an AI-powered audiobook version of her best-selling memoir “Melania.”
“Creating my AI Audiobook opened my eyes to the countless opportunities and risks this new technology brings to American society,” the first lady told The Post.
“In just a few short years, AI will be the engine driving every business sector across our economy. It is poised to deliver great value to our careers, families, and communities…
“Just as America once led the world into the skies with the Wright Brothers, we are poised to lead again —this time in the age of AI.”
For the Presidential Challenge, teams of students from K-12 will use AI tools such as large language models, robotics, computer vision, decision trees, and neural networks to solve a community problem by creating a phone app or website.
Prizes range from a Presidential Certificate of Achievement, to Cloud Credits and a $10,000 check. State champions will be announced next March, followed by a national championship in June.
Top teams will be invited to present their work at a three-day showcase in Washington, DC, including the White House.
“The Presidential AI Challenge marks our first step in equipping every child with the knowledge base and tools to utilize this emerging technology,” says Mrs. Trump.
“But this is only the beginning. It is essential that every member of our academic community, including our great educators, administrators, and students rise to this historic challenge with on-going curiosity, perseverance, and ingenuity.”
The initiative is part of President Trump’s April 23 Executive Order: “Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education For American Youth.” It aims to encourage the next generation to harness the coming AI productivity powerhouse and help retain America’s global leadership in the field.
For Mrs. Trump, 55, the AI Challenge is a natural extension of her commitment to education and innovation in a digital age, aligning with her first term “Be Best” priorities of online safety and youth empowerment.
“It’s heartbreaking to witness young teens, especially girls, grappling with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content, like deepfakes,” she told a Capitol Hill roundtable in March to promote passage of the Take It Down Act.
“We must prioritize their well-being by equipping them with the support and tools necessary to navigate this hostile digital landscape.”
The launch of Mrs. Trump’s audiobook in May, featuring an accurate AI-generated version of her voice, has facilitated audio translations into Hindi, Portuguese and Spanish, ushering in what she calls “the future of publishing.”
The next step for the reclusive but entrepreneurial first lady is her $40 million collaboration with Amazon Prime Video on a documentary about her life.
“The book was such a success,” she told Fox & Friends, “and I get so many messages and letters [from] my fans and people [who] would love to hear more from me, so I had an idea to make a movie, to make a film, about my life.
“My life is … incredibly busy, and I told my agent, ‘I have this idea, so please go out and make a deal for me.’”
The behind-the-scenes film about Melania Trump was filmed in Washington DC, New York, and Palm Beach, and is set to be released later this year.