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By Megan Cartwright
Associate News Editor
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Joe Rogan has said he hopes artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually play a major role in government and international relations.
On Tuesday's episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, the podcast host said that poor decisions by political leaders had been a driving force behind many wars, and suggested that AI could potentially reduce or even eliminate military conflicts.
His comments come amid a growing debate over AI's risks, regulation, and expanding role in everyday life. Questions about how much authority AI systems should have, and where limits should be imposed, are becoming increasingly important as governments and businesses expand their use of the technology.
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Newsweek contacted Rogan's representatives for comment via email on Wednesday morning.
What To Know
While discussing conflict throughout modern history, Rogan said that ordinary people are often led into wars by decision-makers rather than seeking conflict themselves.
"The problem is always leaders," he said. "It's not that human beings inherently want to go to war with people they don't know from another part of the world."
Rogan pointed to several major conflicts—including the Vietnam War, the Iraq War and the Afghanistan War—as examples of those he believes were driven by poor leadership decisions.
Rogan added that meaningful change will require a different approach to how nations interact with one another.
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Rogan's Vision for AI-Led Decision Making
Rogan said he hopes AI will eventually take over some responsibilities currently handled by governments.
"It sounds like a crazy hope," Rogan said. "But my hope is that as AI becomes more and more omnipresent, as we start farming off various tasks to it, one of the things that we're gonna farm off is government."
He also suggested that AI could play a role in diplomatic relations and military decision-making.
"I know that's terrifying to people," he said, before noting that humanity's track record on war should at least prompt consideration for alternatives.
Rogan painted a hypothetical scenario in which AI oversight could immediately halt military conflicts around the world. "Imagine a war where it stops. All war stops on the planet," he said.
Debate Over AI's Risks
Rogan's comments come during a period of heightened debate surrounding the pace of AI development.
Last week, former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon drew attention after leaving the company and warning that advanced AI could pose an existential threat to humanity within the next decade.
Since then, several prominent figures in the industry have voiced support for stronger safeguards around the technology. Among them are Anthropic co-founders Dario Amodei and Jack Clark, who have argued for measures designed to slow or better manage the development of increasingly powerful AI systems.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have also both publicly supported calls for caution as the technology continues to advance.
But not everyone shares those fears. President Donald Trump recently dismissed warnings about AI's threat to humanity, calling the concerns a "HOAX" in a series of posts on Truth Social.
How U.S. Government Is Already Using AI
AI is already being incorporated into parts of U.S. government operations. Current uses, however, are focused on supporting operations rather than making policy decisions.
In April 2025, the Office of Management and Budget directed agencies to expand their use of AI to improve public services and "enhance government efficiency," while maintaining protections for civil rights, privacy and public trust.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) also noted that "federal agencies are already using AI to analyze weather hazards," and described AI as a technology that "could improve government operations."
Within the Department of Defense, officials have highlighted AI's growing role in military planning and analysis. When unveiling the Pentagon's AI adoption strategy in 2023, the former deputy defense secretary Kathleen Hicks said: "AI-enabled systems can help accelerate the speed of commanders’ decisions and improve the quality and accuracy of those decisions."
But defense officials have stressed that AI is being used to assist human decision-makers rather than replace them. The Pentagon's strategy says the goal is to equip personnel with tools that enable "better decisions faster" across military and business operations.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
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