White House Reveals Its Next Steps Towards ‘Responsible’ AI Development | engaged

The White House has made responsible AI development a focus of this administration in recent months, releasing a Blueprint AI Bill of Rights, developing a risk management framework, pledging $140 million to establish seven new National Academies dedicated to AI research and considering how private companies use the technology. On Tuesday, the executive announced its next steps toward that goal, including publishing an update to the National AI R&D Strategic Plan for the first time since 2019 and issuing a request for public input on critical AI issues. The Ministry of Education also dropped its long-awaited report on the effects and risks of AI for students.

The OSTP’s National AI R&D Strategic Plan, which guides the federal government’s investment in AI research, hadn’t been updated since the Trump administration (when he abolished OSTP staffing). The plan seeks to promote responsible innovation in the field that serves the public interest without infringing on the rights, security and democratic values ​​of the public, and has so far done so through eight core strategies. Tuesday’s update adds a ninth and establishes “a principled and coordinated approach to international collaboration in AI research,” the White House said.

“The federal government plays a critical role in ensuring that technologies such as AI are developed responsibly and to serve the American people,” the OSTP argued in its release. “Federal investments over many decades have led to many important discoveries in AI innovations that drive industry and society today, and federally funded research has supported advances in AI throughout the evolution of the field.”

The OSTP also wants to hear the public’s opinion on both its new strategies and the development of the technology in general. As such, it invites “interested individuals and organizations” to submit their comments to one or more of the nearly 30 prompt questions, including “How can AI quickly identify and address cyber vulnerabilities in existing critical infrastructure systems more quickly?” and “How can federal agencies use shared pools of resources, expertise and lessons learned to better leverage AI in government?” via the Federal eRulemaking portal before 5:00 PM ET on July 7, 2023. Responses must be limited to 10 pages in 11-point font.

The Department of Education also released its report on Tuesday on the promises and pitfalls of AI in schools, highlighting its impact on learning, teaching, assessment and research. Despite the recent media frenzy about generative AIs like ChatGPT fueling the destruction of higher education by helping students write their essays, the DoE noted that AI “can enable new forms of teacher-student interaction, help teachers to address variability in learning, increase feedback loops, and empower educators.”