Right now, there are several issues facing AI development across the world, and one of them is access. Well, this is something that several governments around the world are trying to fix. The U.S. government is looking to grant more regions access to powerful AI technology.
When it comes to creators, AI technology looks like it will cause more harm than good. We’re talking about artists, musicians, filmmakers, and so many more types of creators losing their jobs due to being replaced by AI models. However, there’s another side to the AI coin. This technology can have some major positive implications for people in need.
There are countries that have benefited from AI when it comes to education, farming, and so on. Kids have gotten access to AI-powered tutors in Brazil and Indian farmers have been using AI-powered apps to adapt to ever-changing weather conditions, just to name a few examples. So, amid the possible dangers that AI could bring, there are still some constructive applications that this technology has, and the U.S. government wants to explore.
The U.S. government wants more people to have access to AI technology
On Monday, the Advancing Sustainable Development Through Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy AI Event happened, and Secretary of State Anthony J. Blinken spoke about the government’s plans going forward. He gave a 10-minute introduction that expressed the issues that are blocking AI development.
Access is one of the major barriers, as many low-income countries are struggling to gain proper access to the powerful tools that richer regions have. For example, the United States is leading the AI race with some of the most powerful tech and AI companies. These include OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, xAI, and Meta just to name a few. There are also companies that aren’t as deep into AI but are planning to make a splash in the market like Apple and Amazon.
However, other places like India, Africa, Indonesia, etc. don’t have ready access to powerful tools or many companies with the capacity to develop massive LLMs. This is something that Blinken mentioned during his introduction. “‘Inclusive’ means that more people can access, understand, and develop AI to help solve the problems that they actually face in their lives,” he said.
$33 million dollar plan
As such, the U.S. government is dedicating a sizable $33 million toward a major initiative to help other regions build their AI tools. $10 million will go to expanding access to AI to other places. It will go to giving lower-income regions the tools that other places enjoy every day.
Along with that, the other $23 million will help build the proper governance frameworks to develop AI safely in these regions. Access and computing power mean nothing if the AI isn’t being developed safely.
The full scope of this plan goes far beyond the promised $33 million. Together, along with private sectors and partners, the government wants to push a full $100 million to this effort.
This is something that could definitely help AI in general for the world. Sure, we like what OpenAI and Google are doing with AI (some of the time, that is), but we can’t deny that the next biggest innovation in AI could come from the most unlikely of places. Advanced tech is nothing without the innovative minds willing to use it to its potential. This initiative could advance AI more than we expect.
There’s going to be an international gathering of AI safety institutes and experts hosted by the U.S in November. This will hopefully provide more useful advancements to the global push for AI technology.