President Biden’s October 2023 Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence was seen as a watershed, a ruling that acknowledged both the capacity for tremendous good and harmful risk inherent in AI technologies. It and its attendant guidance, issued by the Office of Management and Budget, set in motion a number of requirements and introduced new processes. These included a mandate for agencies to appoint chief AI officers and boost transparency about AI implementation.
Several months on from the EO, the government has taken further steps and made evidence of progress. In recent public appearances, Federal Chief Information Officer Clare Martorana indicated that more developments are on the horizon, FedScoop said Tuesday.
We are officially two weeks out from Potomac Officers Club’s 5th Annual AI Summit. To hear directly from top federal officials — particularly those in the Pentagon — about the status of AI implementation and what they need from industry, we encourage you to register to attend. The event is on March 21 at the Marriott Fairview Park in Falls Church, Virginia and spots are limited.
Officials are currently attempting to expand and provide more detail on their AI use case inventories, making them more accessible and navigable for the public. Just before the EO was issued, in September, it was estimated there are over 700 usages of AI currently active across federal agencies and offices.
“We’re working really hard to make sure that we’re enhancing those use cases … with metadata so that we can search them and really interrogate them, rather than just collect them and broadcast them — really to get key learnings from those,” Martorana said.
In February, the Department of Commerce unveiled the U.S. AI Safety Institute Consortium, or the AISIC. This brain trust is meant to gather members of academia, government and industry along with AI producers, users and “civil society organizations” to promote risk managed, secure AI use. As of now, AISIC is made up of over 200 member groups, all of whom have direct involvement and a stake in the AI conversation.
These developments are a promising start for those invested in AI, machine learning, autonomy and automated tech and a sign that within the Biden-Harris administration at least, there is a long term commitment to identifying ways to safely and transparently integrate AI into daily practice.
Every year, the Potomac Officers Club’s AI Summit is a highlight for government contractors who want to dialogue with the government’s foremost minds about AI, and to compare notes on the subject with colleagues and competitors alike. Register here for the March 21st event now — only a few tickets remain!
