Robert F. Kennedy Jr Agrees AI Should Fast-Track Drug Approvals Amid Vaccine Claims

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. caused a commotion when he recently appeared on Tucker Carlson's podcast. His views varied from incendiary vaccine assertions to ambitious proposals for the adoption of artificial intelligence by the U.S. healthcare sector, inspiring worries among political and medical communities.

Based on the interview, he believes AI will help the FDA approve drugs much faster.

Can AI Speed Up FDA Drug Approvals?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr Agrees AI Should Fast-Track Drug Approvals

Kennedy spoke about his plan to redesign the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), labeling it as "designed to fail." He stated that the existing system undercounts vaccine-related injury and requires a full redesign, possibly boosted by AI. In Kennedy's view, this AI-aided solution would improve vaccine injury reporting for accuracy and speed.

He also indicated the FDA would embrace AI to accelerate drug approvals, possibly doing away with the requirement for conventional animal testing.

"We are at the cutting edge of AI. We're implementing it in all of our departments. At FDA, we're accelerating drug approvals so that you don't need to use primates or even animal models. You can do the drug approvals very, very quickly with AI."

While he guaranteed faster, more streamlined processes, critics are worried about the safety and ethics of applying untested AI tools to public health policy.

Controversial Vaccine Statements

Kennedy echoed his well-established opinion that vaccines are associated with autism, a contention consistently refuted by scientific evidence. As a holder of a high-ranking public health post, Kennedy contended that vaccines had not been properly examined and called for new studies, Gizmodo finds.

Kennedy told Carlson that Americans should do their own research and not listen to the experts. Though he presented this as a movement against conformity, health experts caution that such rhetoric erodes public confidence in science and circulates misinformation.

Targeting Fauci and Reviving COVID Conspiracies

Carlson wanted to know from Kennedy if Dr. Anthony Fauci should be criminally prosecuted. Kennedy did not say directly but wanted a "truth commission" established to probe COVID-19 policies, giving immunity to people coming forward to testify. He went so far as to say Fauci had "liability" for the creation of the virus because of supposed research financing at the Wuhan Institute.

Furthermore, Kennedy sidestepped exploring the spiritual undercurrents of his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement in this interview but was adamant about the importance of individualized health surveillance.

Kennedy disclosed that he would advocate wearable health technology, like glucose meters, for the masses. His Surgeon General pick, Casey Means, who sells such devices, has espoused similar concepts on podcasts like Joe Rogan's.

In a rare disagreement with Trump, Kennedy condemned tariffs, stating they are bad for business. Nevertheless, he otherwise commended the current president, describing him as "empathetic" and "immensely knowledgeable."