[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 22 (Wednesday, February 2, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5876-5878]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-02161]


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OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY


Request for Information to the Update of the National Artificial 
Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan

AGENCY: Office of Science and Technology Policy.

ACTION: Request for information.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Science and Technology Policy, on behalf of the 
National Science and Technology Council's (NSTC) Select Committee on 
Artificial Intelligence (Select Committee), the NSTC Machine Learning 
and AI Subcommittee (MLAI-SC), the National AI Initiative Office 
(NAIIO), and the Networking and Information Technology Research and

[[Page 5877]]

Development (NITRD) National Coordination Office (NCO), requests input 
from all interested parties on updating the National Artificial 
Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan. Through this 
Request for Information (RFI), OSTP, the Select Committee, NAIIO, and 
NITRD NCO seek input from the public, including academic, State, and 
industry groups; those directly performing Artificial Intelligence (AI) 
research and development (R&D); and those directly affected by such 
R&D, on the ways in which the strategic plan should be revised and 
improved. The public input provided in response to this RFI will assist 
OSTP, the Select Committee, MLAI-SC, NAIIO, and NITRD NCO in updating 
the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic 
Plan.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
11:59 p.m. (ET) on March 4, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Comments submitted in response to this notice may be sent by 
any of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Email submissions should be 
machine-readable and not be copy-protected. Submissions should include 
``RFI Response: National Artificial Intelligence Research and 
Development Strategic Plan'' in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: AI R&D RFI Response Team, Attn: Faisal D'Souza, NCO, 
2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA.
    Instructions: Response to this RFI is voluntary. Each individual or 
institution is requested to submit only one response. Submissions must 
not exceed 10 pages (exclusive of a cover page) in 12 point or larger 
font, with a page number provided on each page. Responses should 
include the name of the person(s) or organization(s) filing the 
comment.
    Responses to this RFI may be posted online at https://www.ai.gov. 
Therefore, we request that no business proprietary information, 
copyrighted information, or personally identifiable information be 
submitted in response to this RFI.
    In accordance with FAR 15.202(3), responses to this notice are not 
offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding 
contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated 
with responding to this RFI.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Faisal D'Souza at 202-459-9681 or [email protected], or by post mailing to 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, 
Alexandria, VA 22314, USA. Individuals who use a telecommunications 
device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay 
Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. (ET) Monday 
through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: In 2019, the National Artificial 
Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan: 2019 Update was 
released by NSTC's Select Committee on AI to guide government efforts 
in AI R&D. The plan set out eight strategic aims:
    Strategy 1: Make long-term investments in AI research.
    Strategy 2: Develop effective methods for human-AI collaboration.
    Strategy 3: Understand and address the ethical, legal, and societal 
implications of AI.
    Strategy 4: Ensure the safety and security of AI systems.
    Strategy 5: Develop shared public datasets and environments for AI 
training and testing.
    Strategy 6: Measure and evaluate AI technologies through standards 
and benchmarks.
    Strategy 7: Better understand the national AI R&D workforce needs.
    Strategy 8: Expand Public-Private Partnerships to accelerate 
advances in AI.
    On January 01, 2021, the National AI Initiative Act of 2020, as 
part of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY2021 5103(d)(2) 
became law. The National AI Initiative Act calls for regular updates to 
the National AI R&D Strategic Plan to include ``goals, priorities, and 
metrics for guiding and evaluating how the agencies carrying out the 
National AI Initiative will:
    (A) Determine and prioritize areas of artificial intelligence 
research, development, and demonstration requiring Federal Government 
leadership and investment;
    (B) support long-term funding for interdisciplinary artificial 
intelligence research, development, demonstration, and education;
    (C) support research and other activities on ethical, legal, 
environmental, safety, security, bias, and other appropriate societal 
issues related to artificial intelligence;
    (D) provide or facilitate the availability of curated, 
standardized, secure, representative, aggregate, and privacy-protected 
data sets for artificial intelligence research and development;
    (E) provide or facilitate the necessary computing, networking, and 
data facilities for artificial intelligence research and development;
    (F) support and coordinate Federal education and workforce training 
activities related to artificial intelligence; and
    (G) support and coordinate the network of artificial intelligence 
research institutes.''
    The OSTP, the Select Committee, MLAI-SC, NAIIO, and NITRD NCO seek 
input on potential revisions to the strategic plan to reflect updated 
priorities related to AI R&D. Responses could include suggestions as to 
the addition, removal, or modification of strategic aims, including 
suggestions to address OSTP's priorities of ensuring the United States 
leads the world in technologies that are critical to our economic 
prosperity and national security, and to maintaining the core values 
behind America's scientific leadership, including openness, 
transparency, honesty, equity, fair competition, objectivity, and 
democratic values. Responses could include suggestions of AI R&D focus 
areas that could create solutions to address societal issues such as 
equity, climate change, healthcare, and job opportunities, especially 
in communities that have been traditionally underserved. Comments for 
the strategic plan are welcomed regarding how AI R&D can help address 
harms due to disparate treatment of different demographic groups; 
research that informs the intersection of AI R&D and application with 
privacy and civil liberties; AI R&D to help address the 
underrepresentation of certain demographic groups in the AI workforce; 
and AI R&D to evaluate and address bias, equity, or other concerns 
related to the development, use, and impact of AI. Responses could also 
include comments on strategic directions related to international 
cooperation on AI R&D and on providing inclusive pathways for more 
Americans to participate in AI R&D. Additionally, comments are invited 
as to existing strategic aims, along with their past or future 
implementation by the Federal government. Following the receipt of 
comments, OSTP, the Select Committee, and NAIIO, in consultation with 
the NSTC Subcommittee on Machine Learning and AI and the NITRD AI R&D 
Interagency Working Group, will consider the input provided in updating 
the strategic plan.
    Reference: National Artificial Intelligence Research and 
Development Strategic Plan: 2019 Update: https://www.nitrd.gov/pubs/National-AI-RD-Strategy-2019.pdf.
    National Defense Authorization Act for FY2021 5103(d)(2): https://www.congress.gov/116/crpt/hrpt617/CRPT-116hrpt617.pdf#page=1214.

[[Page 5878]]

    Submitted by the Office of Science and Technology Policy on January 
28, 2022.

Stacy Murphy,
Operations Manager, White House Office of Science and Technology 
Policy.
[FR Doc. 2022-02161 Filed 2-1-22; 8:45 am]
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