Technocrats from several cabinet departments and federal agencies will join the Testing Risks of AI for National Security , or TRAINS, taskforce that the Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute has formed to boost U.S. leadership in AI and support national security efforts.
The taskforce members will partner in the identification, measurement and management of issues and concerns on national safety emerging from AI’s rapid advancements, the Department of Commerce said Wednesday.
TRAINS will facilitate synchronized research and validation of advanced AI solutions affecting national security and public welfare in such areas as critical infrastructure and military capacities, the department added.
The taskforce’s creation was announced ahead of Wednesday’s opening of the inaugural convention of the International Network of AI Safety Institutes co-hosted by the Departments of Commerce and State in San Francisco.
TRAINS Taskforce Lineup
The TRAINS taskforce, chaired by the U.S. Safety Institute, is initially composed of representatives from the following:
- Department of Defense, including the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office and the National Security Agency
- Department of Energy and 10 of its national laboratories
- Department of Homeland Security, including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
- National Institutes of Health at the Department of Health and Human Services
TRAINS membership is expected to grow across the federal government as the taskforce’s work proceeds.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo stressed that the taskforce is important in uniting federal resources to address AI’s challenges. “The U.S. AI Safety Institute will continue to lead by centralizing the top-notch national security and AI expertise that exists across government in order to harness the benefits of AI for the betterment of the American people and American business,” she said.
