Oregon launches State Government Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council

As government works to get their heads around the potential impacts — positive and negative — a number of advisory bodies are being stood up at all levels of government. Now, the state of Oregon has its own Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council. And it meets for the first time, next week.

Its purpose:

This council is established by Governor Kotek’s Executive Order 23-26 to recommend an action plan to guide awareness, education, and usage of artificial intelligence in state government that aligns with the state’s policies, goals and values and support public servants to deliver customer service more efficiently and effectively. This is a governor ordered council.

The purpose of the Council is to recommend an action plan to guide awareness, education, and usage of artificial intelligence in state government that aligns with the State’s policies, goals, and values and supports public servants to deliver customer service more efficiently and effectively. The recommended action plan shall include concrete executive actions, policies, and investments needed to leverage artificial intelligence while honoring transparency, privacy, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Members include:

Appointed Chair: Terrence Woods, State Chief Information Officer

Appointees:

• Kathryn Darnell Helms, State Chief Data Officer
• Melinda Gross, Department of Administrative Services Cultural Change Officer
• [Vacant]https://www.oregon.gov/eis/Pages/ai-advisory-council.aspx, Governor’s Racial Justice Council
• Daniel Bonham, Member of the Oregon State Senate
• Daniel Nguyen, Member of the House of Representatives
• Jesse Hyatt, Executive Branch Agency Representative
• Andres Lopez, Member
• Catie Theisen, Member
• Hector Dominguez Aguirre, Member
• Janice Lee, Member
• Justus Eaglesmith, Member
• Kimberly McCullough, Member
• K S Venkatraman, Member
• Saby Waraich, Member

According to the Oregon Capital Chronicle:

The council’s creation comes at a time of widespread recognition that AI is a powerful tool that offers benefits and risks. For example, AI can save staff time by transcribing audio or analyzing data to flag trends or problems. But AI also can use facial recognition technology to scan and find fugitives, for example, but the technology is not flawless and also raises privacy concerns.

The first meeting takes place online on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 10:00AM. It is open to the public.

For more information on the advisory council or attending the meeting, please visit Oregon Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council.