President Joe Biden issued an executive order Monday on regulating artificial intelligence, aiming for the United States to "lead the way" in global efforts at managing the new technology's risks, the White House said.

The "landmark" order directs federal agencies to set new safety standards for AI systems and requires developers to "share their safety test results and other critical information with the US government," according to a White House statement.

Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are set to formally introduce the policy at an event later Monday.

The executive action relies on the Cold War-era Defense Production Act, which gives the federal government certain control over companies when national security is at stake.

The law was used early in Biden's tenure to speed up the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence will also address risks to critical infrastructure and seek to protect against AI being used to develop dangerous biological materials.

With the rapid development of generative AI systems such as ChatGPT, the order also requires the development of new "guidance for content authentication and watermarking to clearly label AI-generated content."

Federal agencies will be required to use those tools "to make it easy for Americans to know that the communications they receive from their government are authentic."