Governor Josh Shapiro signed an executive order Wednesday establishing a commission to guide the state’s use of generative artificial intelligence — think quick-learning chatbots like Chat GPT.
Shapiro said the governing board will help state agencies find ways to use AI to improve government services while also establishing guardrails.
“With this new executive order, my administration will empower Commonwealth employees to learn about AI and to then use it better to serve our fellow Pennsylvanians,” the governor said inside Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business. “That is how we can harness the power of AI ethically and responsibly.”
Shapiro noted that while states like Maine have moved to ban the use of AI by government agencies, Pennsylvania state officials want to adapt to the current changing technology.
“We can't pretend that it's just going to go away,” Shapiro added. “We have to meet those concerns with informed solutions. If we don't understand this technology — if we don't establish an innovative and practical and usable government structure — then we're going to be left behind.”
He said the state will do so while also ensuring AI doesn’t replace government workers and keeping cybersecurity in mind. Shapiro said the government will rely on best practices to protect residents’ data and technology.
The state is also partnering with AI experts at Carnegie Mellon University, who will advise the board and contribute additional research. The university launched a Responsible AI initiative last year and announced a new graduate certificate program in AI earlier this summer.
Shapiro announced the state also plans to launch a two-year fellowship program to bring those with degrees in AI to Pennsylvania and leverage their expertise.
Though the board will focus on AI use within the state’s Office of Administration, the governor said its use among students and educators will be left up to individual districts.
“It will not be for me to dictate to our schools what their policies should be. That'll be done by superintendents, principals, presidents of universities,” Shapiro said. “I think the best thing we can do is lead by example and hopefully the examples we set on best practices — on ways to use A.I. to complement the work we do — is going to be something that is informative to our schools, both K-12 and our universities.”
The AI Governing Board will hold its first meeting next week to discuss the resources available to Commonwealth employees, and to help determine any initial guidance needed.
