President Donald Trump visited the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora, North Dakota, on Wednesday to cut the ribbon for its grand opening and deliver a characteristically weird speech. Trump also had the chance to chat with an AI version of Teddy Roosevelt, part of a new exhibit built by Microsoft and the AI lab LemonSlice. The AI exhibit is called Talk With TR, where visitors can walk up to a control panel and swipe their “compass,” a customized RFID bracelet that tells the museum display their name and age. Visitors are then prompted to press a button to talk with the virtual president. Trump asked the AI about the Panama Canal, according to videos posted online, a project started by Roosevelt in 1903 and completed in 1914. “Do you consider the Panama Canal your greatest achievement?” Trump asked.
“Well, tight then, yes,” the AI responded. “The canal stands as one of my proudest battles, no question. But greatness is a strange thing. It isn’t always the biggest or boldest job that matters most. Panama Canal showed what America could achieve if we held steady and acted fast when the world dragged its feet.”
“That said, I measure my greatest work by the lives improved. Parks set aside, food and drugs made safe, the square deal given to all, not just to a few,” the AI responded, adding that as it watched the steam shovels build the canal, it felt it left “a mark that could last.” President Trump asks AI President Roosevelt…“Do you consider the Panama Canal your greatest achievement?” pic.twitter.com/zvfDCL2sKS — Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) July 1, 2026 Trump told the AI Roosevelt it was, “an honor to be with you today,” and they’re “making a little bit of a tour of some of the fantastic things you’ve done.”
