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President Biden on Monday issued a long-awaited executive order on artificial intelligence, according to The Hill.

What’s going on: “The order includes several new actions, which focus on areas like safety, privacy, protecting workers and protecting innovation.” The order is far reaching and “applies to companies with the most powerful AI systems, regardless of whether the companies work with the federal government.”

• The executive order includes new standards for safety, including requiring companies developing models that pose a serious risk to national security, economic security or public health to notify the federal government when training the model, and they must share the results of all safety tests.
• It comprises the piloting of the National AI Research Resource, a program that would, among other things, “expand the ability of highly skilled immigrants and nonimmigrants with expertise in these critical areas to study, stay and work in the U.S. by streamlining visa criteria and interviews.” It also directs the Department of Health and Human Services to create a safety program to gather reports of risky health care practices involving AI.
• In addition, the White House has launched AI.gov, a job site for those who want to work on AI-related issues in the federal government.

Why it’s important: “[These are] the strongest set of actions any government in the world has ever taken on AI safety, security and trust,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Bruce Reed said. “It’s the next step in an aggressive strategy to do everything on all fronts to harness the benefits of AI and mitigate the risks.”

The NAM says: AI represents enormous opportunity for manufacturers, and the industry welcomes commonsense guardrails on its use, the NAM said yesterday.

But it’s imperative that any regulations be made with manufacturers’ cooperation.

• “Manufacturers look forward to working with the administration following the executive order to ensure that any AI standards adopted at the federal level are developed with strong industry participation, support innovation and R&D … protect companies from unnecessary liability and bolster U.S. competitiveness and leadership in AI,” said NAM Managing Vice President of Policy Chris Netram.