White House Seeks Input on Update to AI R&D Plan
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is seeking input on updates to the National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research and Development Strategic Plan. The most recent update to the plan (2019) sets out 8 strategic aims for AI R&D:
- Make long-term investments in AI research.
- Develop effective methods for human-AI collaboration.
- Understand and address the ethical, legal, and societal implications of AI.
- Ensure the safety and security of AI systems.
- Develop shared public datasets and environments for AI training and testing.
- Measure and evaluate AI technologies through standards and benchmarks.
- Better understand the national AI R&D workforce needs.
- Expand Public-Private Partnerships to accelerate advances in AI.
Among the topics for which OSTP is seeking input are potential areas of focus for AI R&D that “could address societal issues such as equity, climate change, healthcare, and job opportunities, especially in communities that have been traditionally underserved,” and “how AI R&D can help address harms due to disparate treatment of different demographic groups; research that informs the intersection of AI R&D and application with privacy and civil liberties; AI R&D to help address the underrepresentation of certain demographic groups in the AI workforce; and AI R&D to evaluate and address bias, equity, or other concerns related to the development, use, and impact of AI.” More details is available in the Federal Register notice. Comments will be accepted through March 4, 2022.