The 2024 GW Business & Policy Forum - Panel 6: Trustworthy AI

AI’s ability to generate conversational output based on algorithmic and probabilistic analysis of vast amounts of content is also what makes it so vulnerable to misalignment. Following two landmark AI regulatory and policy actions in 2023, the Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence issued by the White House, and a provisional agreement reached on the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act, this panel will consider the current state of the AI regulatory landscape. How should trustworthiness be evaluated when the actor is an AI-powered technology? What concerns do corporations, consumers, regulators, and national security officials have about a future with AI and what steps are being taken to ensure they are mitigated? Perspectives on these issues and more will be explored in this panel discussion.

This video features a panel discussion from the second annual GW Business & Policy Forum: Imagining the Future with AI on April 2, 2024 at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

About Our Speakers

John Lach, Ph.D. - Dean, The George Washington University School of Engineering & Applied Science
Dr. John Lach joined SEAS from the University of Virginia, where he served most recently as the director of cross-cutting initiatives at the university’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and as a professor of electrical and computer engineering in the Charles L. Brown Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He previously served as the chair of the department. He is associate director for Translational Research for the NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST).

Erwin Gianchandani, Ph.D. - Assistant Director, Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Gianchandani has worked at NSF since 2012, previously serving as senior advisor for Translation, Innovation, and Partnerships and as the Deputy Assistant Director for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE). Before joining NSF in 2012, Gianchandani was the inaugural director of the Computing Community Consortium. He holds a BA in computer science and an MA and PhD in biomedical engineering, all from the University of Virginia.

Jill Crisman, Ph.D. - Vice President and Executive Director, Digital Safety Research Institute, UL Research Institutes
Jill Crisman, Ph.D., is the vice president and executive director of the Digital Safety Research Institute at UL Research Institutes. She previously served as Principal Director for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (Modernization) within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, and as Chief Scientist for the Department of Defense’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center.

Andy Henson - Senior Vice President, Digital Innovation Factory, SAIC
Andy Henson is the Senior Vice President of SAIC’s Digital Innovation Factory. In this role, he oversees the operationalization of SAIC’s AI ecosystem including technical personnel, strategic partnerships and technology assets. Henson focuses on solving the complex challenges our country faces by leveraging mission-focused applications powered by the latest AI.

Elham Tabassi - Chief Technology Officer, U.S. AI Safety Institute; Chief AI Advisor, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Elham Tabassi is a Senior Research Scientist at NIST and the Associate Director for Emerging Technologies in the Information Technology Laboratory. She leads NIST's Trustworthy and Responsible AI program. She is a member of the National AI Resource Research Task Force, vice-chair of OECD working-party on AI Governance, Associate Editor of IEEE Transaction on Information Forensics and Security, and a fellow of Washington Academy of Sciences.

About the 2024 GW Business & Policy Forum

An artificial intelligence boom is underway and accelerating at an exponential magnitude. The developments in big data and machine learning have now led to large language models that are rapidly paving the way toward the emergence of artificial generative intelligence (AGI). What mechanisms and frameworks should we use to prepare for the future? How should these innovations materialize in markets around the globe? What safe and ethical practices could government and business leaders follow when integrating AI into their operations? During this second annual GW Business & Policy Forum, leading experts and practitioners and leaders from the private and public sectors will convene to discuss these questions and others that society must address, juxtaposed with the transformational benefits of AI for our economic and social welfare.