Jay Clayton Named Trump’s AI Czar as XRP Past Resurfaces

Former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, best known in the crypto industry for launching the 2020 lawsuit against Ripple over XRP, has returned to the spotlight after President Donald Trump appointed him to lead the White House’s new “Super Intelligence Force” (SIF).

Trump announced the appointment on October 4, 2026, naming Clayton to the administration’s AI czar role. Clayton will continue serving as Director of National Intelligence, overseeing 18 U.S. intelligence agencies, while leading the new initiative alongside vice chairs including FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Pentagon CTO Emil Michael.

The SIF will report directly to Trump and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. Its mandate includes producing a report within 120 days examining artificial intelligence—rebranded by the administration as “Super Intelligence” or “SI”—along with associated risks, opportunities and federal responsibilities.

“The risk of not being first is high,” Clayton said, underscoring Washington’s focus on maintaining U.S. leadership in AI. Trump has also suggested the federal government could potentially take equity stakes in major AI companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic.

Clayton remains a familiar name among XRP investors. During his tenure at the SEC, the agency pursued roughly 57 crypto-related enforcement cases, including its December 2020 action against Ripple.

However, that regulatory battle has ended. Judge Analisa Torres ruled that XRP was not a security when sold through secondary markets, while appeals were jointly dismissed in 2025. A March 2026 SEC-CFTC interpretation subsequently classified XRP as a digital commodity alongside Bitcoin and Ethereum.

For crypto investors, the SIF’s upcoming 120-day report could be more important than Clayton’s history with Ripple. Policies involving AI agents, stablecoin payments and dual-use technology could influence emerging crypto-AI infrastructure.

The XRP Ledger has already surpassed 10 million x402 AI-agent payments, with daily activity exceeding 600,000 transactions. Meanwhile, Evernorth secured 94% shareholder approval for its $473 million XRP treasury merger, which is expected to trade on Nasdaq under XRPN.

XRP remains near $1.50, supported by ETF inflows and growing network activity. Clayton’s appointment does not immediately change XRP’s fundamentals, but the SIF’s approach to AI and digital assets could shape the regulatory environment for AI-powered crypto payments.