A new security memo from the White House on Artificial Intelligence, the first ever released, will galvanize the federal government in its AI National Security mission, officials said.
The National Security Memorandum on Artificial Intelligence provides direction on harnessing AI models and AI-enabled technologies across the federal government, with a goal of understanding and mitigating the risks associated with AI systems, improving performance and efficiency of AI systems and strengthening the U.S. AI sector. Officials with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) are leading the effort to address the pros and cons of AI in the federal government, officials said.
“This first-ever National Security Memorandum on Artificial Intelligence establishes that retaining U.S. leadership in the most advanced AI models will be vital for our national security and global competitiveness, while also ensuring the industry can grow rapidly, powered by clean energy investments,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said. “DOE is committed, now more than ever, to harness frontier AI for our science, energy and national security mission, ensuring we have the infrastructure to power this critical technology for the years ahead.”
The memo directs the DOE and NNSA to lead the safety testing and systematic evaluations of frontier AI models; provide expertise, infrastructure and facilities to support systematic testing; and design and build large-scale facilities to harness frontier AI for scientific research and analysis; as well as evaluating AI’s performance and efficiency, and coordinating across the federal government to identify critical nodes in the AI supply chain.
“We are unique among federal agencies in the way we merge science and national security missions, bringing the incredible technical power of the national lab system to bear on complex issues,” Undersecretary for Nuclear Security and NNSA Administrator Jill Hruby said. “AI is a game-changing technology, and the government has a responsibility to evaluate its potential impacts and harness AI for nuclear and national security missions.”