President Biden issued the first-ever National Security Memorandum on Artificial Intelligence, outlining how the Pentagon, intelligence agencies and various national security groups should use artificial intelligence technology to advance national interests and deter threats, touching on everything from nuclear weapons to the supply chain. “The NSM is designed to galvanize federal government adoption of AI to advance the national security mission, including by ensuring that such adoption reflects democratic values and protects human rights, civil rights, civil liberties and privacy,” the White House announced in a statement. Continue reading The White House Defines Government Objectives Involving AI

Anthropic, maker of the the popular Claude AI chatbot, has updated its Responsible Scaling Policy (RSP), designed and implemented to mitigate the risks of advanced AI systems. The policy was introduced last year and has since been improved, with new protocols added to ensure AI models are developed and deployed safely as they grow more powerful. This latest update offers “a more flexible and nuanced approach to assessing and managing AI risks while maintaining our commitment not to train or deploy models unless we have implemented adequate safeguards,” according to Anthropic. Continue reading Anthropic Updates ‘Responsible Scaling’ to Minimize AI Risks

The U.S. Commerce Department has issued a large package of material designed to help AI developers and those using the systems with an approach to identifying and mitigating risks stemming from generative AI and foundation models. Prepared by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the AI Safety Institute, the guidance includes the initial public draft of its guidelines on “Managing Misuse Risk for Dual-Use Foundation Models.” Dual-use refers to models that can be used for good or ill. The release also includes an open-source software test called Dioptra. Apple is the latest to join the government’s voluntary commitments to responsible AI innovation. Continue reading Apple Joins the Safe AI Initiative as NIST Amps Up Outreach

The White House is implementing a new AI policy across the federal government that will be implemented by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Vice President Kamala Harris announced the new rules, which require that all federal agencies have a senior leader overseeing AI systems use, in an effort to ensure that AI deployed in public service remains safe and unbiased. The move was positioned as making good on “a core component” of President Biden’s AI Executive Order (EO), issued in October. Federal agencies reported completing the 150-day actions tasked by the EO. Continue reading Federal Policy Specifies Guidelines for Risk Management of AI

The cost of a data breach can run as high as $4.54 million today, up from $3.86 million in 2020, according to an IBM study that says the fastest-growing — and costliest — type of cyberattack is ransomware. That’s why more companies are turning to cyber insurance to hedge their bets. Last year, the global market for such policies was estimated to be in the $13.33 billion range, and projected to reach $84.62 billion by 2030. Because the increased frequency of attacks has resulted in increased payouts, insurance providers now often require proof of adequate security measures. Continue reading Companies Turn to Cyber Insurance as Global Threats Surge

The EU’s draft AI Act is causing quite a stir, particular as it pertains to regulating general-purpose artificial intelligence, including guidelines for open source developers that specify procedures for accuracy, risk management, transparency, technical documentation and data governance, well as cybersecurity. The first law on AI by a major regulator anywhere, the proposed AI Act seeks to promote “trustworthy AI,” but some are critical that as written the legislation could hurt open efforts to develop AI systems. The EU is seeking industry input as the proposal heads for a vote this fall. Continue reading EU’s AI Act Could Present Dangers for Open-Source Coders

The European Union’s pending Artificial Intelligence Act — the world’s first comprehensive effort to regulate AI — is coming under scrutiny as it moves to law. The Act proposes unplugging AI deemed a risk to society. Critics say it draws too heavily on general consumer product safety rules, overlooking unique aspects of AI, and is too closely tied to EU market law. This could limit its applicability as a template for other regions evaluating AI legislation, contravening the EU’s desired first-movers status in the digital sphere. Continue reading EU’s Sweeping AI Act Takes Tough Stance on High Risk Use

In an effort to thwart misinformation, Amazon-owned live-streaming video service Twitch is cracking down on bad actors. “We do not believe that individuals who use online services to spread false, harmful information, have a place in our community,” the company stated. Twitch worked with researchers and experts to identify three characteristics that all bad actors share: an online presence dedicated to (1) persistently sharing (2) widely disproven and broadly shared (3) harmful misinformation topics, such as conspiracies that promote violence. Twitch specified that it will not take action against “one-off” statements containing misinformation. Continue reading Twitch Aims to Remove Channels That Spread Misinformation

The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) U.S. Technology Policy Committee (USTPC) issued a statement on the use of facial recognition “as applied by government and the private sector,” concluding that, “when rigorously evaluated, the technology too often produces results demonstrating clear bias based on ethnic, racial, gender, and other human characteristics recognizable by computer systems.” ACM, which has 100,000 global members, urged legislators to suspend use of it by government and business entities. Continue reading ACM Calls for Temporary Ban of Facial Recognition Systems

Facebook revealed a ratings system it has been developing over the past year, assigning users a “reputation score” that estimates their trustworthiness on a scale from zero to one. The idea behind the system is to weed out bad actors, according to Facebook product manager Tessa Lyons who is in charge of the battle against fake news. Up until now, Facebook, like other tech companies, has depended on users to report problematic content, but discovered that users began to file false reports about items they said were untrue. Continue reading Facebook, Twitter Turn to Algorithms to Weed Out Bad Actors

Equifax’s two cyber breaches, which exposed about 143 million Americans’ personal information, were the work of hackers who took advantage of a flaw in Apache Struts software. The nonprofit Apache Software Foundation and the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team warned of the bug in early March, but Equifax only alerted its end users on September 7, almost five months later. IT experts say the event highlights the challenges in keeping software current and identifying all potentially vulnerable applications. Continue reading Equifax Breaches Spur Businesses to Prioritize Cybersecurity

Hanson Robotics — which develops robot products and artificial intelligence technology to serve consumer, medical and entertainment markets — is currently looking to fill two positions: robotics product manager and software product manager. The company is seeking a robotics product manager to lead product development and manage hardware, arts and software teams. The company’s software product manager will lead software development in collaboration with the hardware, arts and executive teams. Details and contact information for each position are available on ETCentric. Continue reading Hanson Robotics Is Seeking Experienced Product Managers