First Lady Melania Trump made a rare public appearance at the White House on Thursday, warning that ‘the robots are here’ and emphasizing the need to prepare children for an AI-driven future during a task force meeting. Her comments highlighted a shift towards more active engagement in policy issues affecting youth and technology.
The event marked one of her few public outings since her husband’s return to the presidency, focusing on the White House AI education task force established earlier this year. Mrs. Trump stressed that artificial intelligence is no longer science fiction and called for responsible guidance, akin to parenting, to empower the next generation while ensuring safety.
Born in Slovenia, the 55-year-old former model has often been described as elusive, with limited public engagements sparking curiosity during the 2024 campaign. However, since January, she has adopted a more focused approach, centering her efforts on children’s well-being and leveraging her platform for legislative impact.
Her work builds on the ‘Be Best’ initiative from President Trump’s first term, which addressed cyberbullying and opioid abuse. Recently, she played a key role in passing the Take It Down Act, a bipartisan bill criminalizing the non-consensual sharing of intimate images online, including AI-generated content, and she made history by co-signing it into law.
At the task force meeting, Mrs. Trump was surrounded by cabinet members, administration officials, and representatives from tech companies like IBM and Google, reflecting a business-oriented strategy rather than a traditional, maternal approach. This shift has drawn attention from experts who note her unique focus on regulatory and platform-level solutions.
Einav Rabinovitch-Fox, a historian specializing in first ladies, commented that while it’s common for first ladies to emphasize children’s issues, Melania’s method is more legislative and less gendered, targeting the systems that enable harm. Anita McBride of American University’s First Ladies Initiative added that Mrs. Trump now enjoys broader support from external organizations, enhancing her ability to influence fast-moving tech policies.
Beyond domestic affairs, Mrs. Trump has engaged internationally, writing a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin in August about protecting children worldwide, which prompted responses from the first ladies of Ukraine and Turkey. This demonstrates her willingness to weigh in on global issues connected to her interests, despite her generally low profile.
Looking forward, Mrs. Trump is expected to maintain her selective and substantive approach, focusing on areas where she can drive change, such as technology and child protection, without conforming to traditional expectations of the first lady role.