AI.gov Launched For U.S. Artificial Intelligence Initiatives

The U.S. government has launched a new website dedicate to hosting initiatives involving the ongoing efforts to build, implement and regulate artificial intelligence. The site – AI.gov – arrives a month after President Trump signed an executive order (13859) that outlines the country's policy on artificial intelligence. This includes objectives such as encouraging related governmental agencies to provide a sustained investment in the industry, reducing barriers for the use of AI to fuel innovation, and creating an action plan that will ensure the U.S.' strategic advantage against "foreign adversaries" during the roll-out of AI-driven technologies.AI.gov will provide a central location for information about AI-related projects occurring across various agencies, including policy initiatives, regulatory hurdles, as well as fact sheets and other resources. Along with helping inform the public and preparing people for the many anticipated effects that AI will have on the American economy and workforce, the new website will aid agencies in coordinating their research and development efforts.

The extent that AI will impact society depends on who you ask, though it's largely agreed that automation and machine intelligence will continue to displace workers in many industries, not least of which will be manufacturing and transportation. As this occurs, it's said that AI.gov will serve as the go-to resource for people to learn about such an evolving landscape. Along with aiding in the process of retraining workers for new roles, the portal will provide a hub for those in the AI industry to keep updated on new developments and discoveries.

Currently, the site has two main pages: one that provides an overview discussing the roles that AI will play in the U.S. including the aforementioned executive order, and a separate section that contains documents, fact sheets, speeches and interviews, international happenings, notable media coverage, and information in general about current and previous AI initiatives dating back to the Obama administration.

Following the executive order announced last month, the U.S. government's federal budget proposal for 2020 includes the allocation of $927 million for Defense Department projects involving AI and machine learning, as well as $850 million for funding AI initiatives elsewhere. The $850 million would be split among several agencies including:

• $492 million to the National Science Foundation (NSF) for "transformative research in artificial intelligence..."

• $119 to the Department of Energy (DoE) to "improve the robustness, reliability, and transparency of Big Data and AI technologies, as well as quantification and development of software tools for DOE mission applications..."

Also on the list is an undetermined sum to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for "[focusing on] artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for catalyzing advances in basic (e.g., image interpretation, neuroscience, genomic variants and disease risk, gene structure, and epigenomics) and clinical research..." Finally, an undetermined sum to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for reasons that we haven't found mentioned.