AI and Government: Six Key Takeaways from NewDEAL Policy Roundtable
NewDEAL Leaders convened a policy roundtable during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, bringing together experts and elected officials to discuss the impacts of the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence, or generative AI.
NewDEAL CEO Debbie Cox Bultan started the discussion by noting that citizens and elected leaders “need to think of the world as it is and as it is going to be, not what it was.” She reminded us that state and local governments can and should embrace AI’s potential rather than fear it, with a focus on solving real-world problems.
Elected leaders featured during the discussion included U.S. Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-MD); Mayor Kate Gallego, Phoenix; Dorcey Applyrs, Chief City Auditor, Albany, NY; Assemblyperson Alex Bores (D-NY); and Maggie Toulouse Oliver, New Mexico Secretary of State.
Here are six key takeaways from the discussion.
1.Cities should embrace low-hanging AI fruit. While some city officials are hesitant to embrace AI without more regulation, Dorcey Applyrs encouraged officials to go after low-hanging fruit. In the Albany school district, the 10,000 children speak 47 different languages. AI can help make communication with students — and parents — more seamless. Such applications can be used with little to no risk.
Similarly, Alex Bores, the only legislator in New York with a degree in computer science, has heard from some officials concerned about the time-consuming need to customize AI applications. However, he noted that there are off-the-shelf applications that can be used easily or with little modifications. In addition to translation services, Bores sees both emergency alerts and responding to constituents calling in for relatively simple questions as areas where cities can quickly embrace AI. For constituents, he noted that AI can significantly reduce call wait times for relatively easy questions.
2. AI can help state and local governments with mundane tasks. Microsoft’s Lara Rubbelke touted the ways governments can use AI to help with mundane tasks. She pointed to surveys about how much time workers spend preparing for work (calendering, setting up meetings, etc.) as opposed to actually doing work. And for many workers, these mundane tasks can lead to burnout. AI can help — and is helping — some localities increase productivity and efficiency.
3. Phoenix is leading the way on AI. Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego touted the city’s embrace of AI and technology. The city is home to the largest autonomous vehicle area in the world, which helps not only the environment (all the autonomous cars are EVs), but also helps some underserved communities. For example, survivors of domestic violence may be more comfortable getting into an autonomous vehicle. In addition, the desert city is using AI technology to find ways to conserve water. And the city government is working with a local university that created a digital twin of the city. Officials can now examine the impact of potential policies on a digital twin to find unintended consequences before rolling out the policy.
4. AI brings promises and concerns around elections. New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver highlighted that AI can help election officials in some ways. AI can be used to analyze and assist with voting flow and wait times for citizens. In addition, AI can help provide accurate, consistent information on when, where, and how people can vote.
On the other hand, AI models are not perfect and can sometimes provide inaccurate information. In addition, Toulouse Oliver echoed concerns about AI being used to deliberately spread misinformation and disinformation during campaigns. In New Mexico (and some other states), campaigns must disclose if they use generative AI in campaign ads. (Learn more about AI and elections from the NewDEAL Forum.)
5. Policy and regulation are needed to prevent and mitigate real harms. While generative AI has enormous upside potential, it is already being used to harm certain communities. Pornographic deepfakes (AI-generated images) are increasingly easy to create and share, which disproportionately impacts women and girls, as well as the LGBTQ+ community. Electoral deepfakes are also becoming more prevalent, where AI is used to imitate the images or voices of politicians. As Rep. Ivy pointed out, most members of Congress have the staff and ability to deal with deepfakes, but middle school girls do not have the same resources.
Bores and others also noted data privacy issues are key concerns. These concerns are especially poignant when it comes to health care data.
Solutions to these issues will require a combination of policy, regulation, and technology.
6. The Federal Government is showing how AI can improve efficiency. Federal agencies are incorporating AI technology into their offices to improve efficiency. For example, the State Department is using AI to more quickly respond to FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests. And employees at various agencies are using AI to provide more detailed weather forecasts and information.
