Yesterday, the White House announced a series of workshops and an interagency working group devoted to the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence (AI).  The announcement cited the growing influence of AI, and specifically its potential applications in healthcare, education, and transportation.  On the other hand, the announcement noted the potential risks and policy challenges of AI, such as the potential for job losses and the challenges of predicting and controlling AI technology.

To assess these opportunities and challenges, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy will be co-hosting four public workshops on AI topics in the coming months, which will result in a public report later this year.  Each of the workshops will be co-hosted by academic and non-profit organizations, and two of them will also be co-hosted by the National Economic Council.  The workshops are as follows:

• Legal and Governance Implications of Artificial Intelligence (May 24, 2016 in Seattle, WA)

• Artificial Intelligence for Social Good (June 7, 2016 in Washington, DC)

• Safety and Control for Artificial Intelligence (June 28, 2016 in Pittsburgh, PA)

• The Social and Economic Implications of Artificial Intelligence Technologies in the Near-Term (July 7, 2016 in New York, NY)

In addition to the workshops, the White House announced a new National Science and Technology Council Subcommittee on Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence, which will meet for the first time next week.  This working group will monitor advances in AI and machine learning within the federal government, the private sector, and internationally, and help coordinate federal activity in the AI space.  The working group’s efforts may include empowering federal agencies to run pilot programs to evaluate AI-driven approaches and government investment in research on the use of AI for government services.