Artificial intelligence allows computerized systems to perform tasks traditionally requiring human intelligence: analytics, decision support, visual perception and foreign language translation. AI and robotics process automation, or RPA, have the potential to spur economic growth, enhance national security, and improve the quality of life. In a world of “Big Data” and “Thick Data,” AI tools can process huge amounts of data in seconds, automating tasks that would take days or longer for human beings to perform—and the public sector in the United States is at the very beginning of a long-term journey to develop and harness these tools.
The National Academy of Public Administration identified Making Government AI Ready as one of the Grand Challenges in Public Administration. I chaired the Academy’s Election 2020 Project Working Group on AI. Our report—released in August 2020—contained a series of practical nonpartisan recommendations for how the administration in 2021 should address this Grand Challenge.
Clearly, our nation is deeply divided, and many citizens are dismissive of science and technology. If citizens don’t trust one another, might there be a day when they trust machines more? What will the promises of AI bring and why is this important? And given a large portion of today’s society seeming inability to accept facts, can AI one day be used to curtail the spread of conspiracy theories?
Despite the divisiveness of today’s political landscape, it is reassuring to note that a cadre of highly dedicated and knowledgeable career public managers have tra ..
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