Tess deBlanc-Knowles Appointed as Special Assistant to the Director for AI at NSF

On December 12, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced the appointment of Tess deBlanc-Knowles as the new Special Assistant to the Director for Artificial Intelligence. Alongside this role, she’ll continue her duties within NSF’s Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships as Strategic Advisor for Technology Policy and Strategy.

As a former OSTP Senior Policy Advisor, deBlanc-Knowles led policy efforts to strengthen the nation’s AI innovation by co-chairing the National AI Research Resource Task Force, oversaw the the National AI Research and Development Strategic Plan: 2023 Update and led the process in crafting the nation’s first strategy to advance privacy-enhancing technologies. Now, as the lead in the Office of the Director for AI-related issues, deBlanc-Knowles will be tasked to steer NSF’s alignment with the Executive Order on AI. This involves nurturing collaborations across the agency on AI initiatives and engaging meaningfully with national AI strategies.