The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has established the U.S. AI Safety Institute, a consortium to determine guidelines and standards for AI measurement and policy. The institute comprises public and private sector organizations, including companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Cisco, as well as academic institutions and research organizations. The consortium will work on projects such as developing industry standards for safe and trustworthy AI, evaluating AI capabilities, and incorporating secure development practices. The U.S. AI Safety Institute was created as part of President Joe Biden’s Executive Order on AI proliferation and safety and falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Commerce.
From Politico, Adobe, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, and TikTok are among the companies involved in forming an industry “accord” to combat the use of deepfake AI in elections. The accord aims to create tools to detect and debunk manipulated images and audio of public figures, as well as increase transparency in fighting AI-generated disinformation. The accord will be presented at the Munich Security Conference.
It’s needed, too. Researchers from The College of William & Mary, Google, and IBM have found gaps in the privacy practices of political campaign websites. The study analyzed over 2,000 campaigns from the 2020 US election cycle and revealed that many campaigns retained extensive private data, provided incomplete privacy disclosures, and shared data with other campaigns. The study emphasizes the need for regulations to prevent the misuse of user data by political campaigns.
By closely following the development of industry standards for safe and trustworthy AI, businesses can proactively integrate these standards into their AI practices. This foresight can be a competitive advantage, ensuring products and services meet future regulatory requirements and customer expectations. It’s why I keep focusing on them.
Bias alert: I’m a graduate of William & Mary from that computer science program and spoke at a recent employment event. That’s also a reason I spotted this research. The insight here is that IT service providers can tap into this need by offering compliance assessment and consulting services to political campaigns and organizations, ensuring they adhere to best practices and regulations regarding data privacy. There’s a need there. Be aware of the financial dynamics of political campaigns – they are not long-term organizations. Cash upfront.