Over the last several years, Artificial Intelligence has moved from where it started – research laboratories – into the very heart of public policy making. It is now at the very core of our national competitive posture, our workforce preparedness, our ability to build digital trust, and ultimately, sustainable economic growth over time. According to McKinsey, AI could contribute up to $4.4 trillion annually to the global economy, underscoring why governments now treat AI as strategic infrastructure rather than experimental technology.

With this shift as a backdrop, the actions of the U.S. government to deeply engage with various leading technology companies are clearly a signal that the intent is, in fact, to move quickly, responsibly, and globally in developing Artificial Intelligence capabilities.

Technology companies like Apple, Amazon, and OpenAI are no longer simply vendors and innovators, but strategic, collaborative partners in determining how AI is created, led, and utilized in a national context.

For those in the profession who are observing this transition, the fundamental issue is whether BigTech will help us build AI for the public sector. Rather, the fundamental issue is how this partnership is going to redefine the rules of innovation, trust, and accountability. 

Why Big Tech Is The Government’s Partner

The U.S. government has prioritized AI as a policy issue across the sector, and it is now a priority for defense, health care, education, and public services. Rather than attempting to build all the required AI infrastructure internally, federal agencies are forming working agreements with companies that have large-scale AI operations.

Three key reasons are driving this strategy.

The first is that the computing resources needed for the extensive amount of energy consumed by AI infrastructure are enormous. 

McKinsey reports that less than 30% of organizations worldwide have sufficient AI talent, making public–private collaboration essential for skills acceleration.

Second, the density of the talent pool is still significantly larger in the private sector than it is in any government. The private sector continues to develop people into talent pools faster than any other entity.

Third, as the pace of innovation in the global technology landscape is so fast, the ability to quickly deploy products is very important. For these reasons, it has been reported that the U.S. Government is now spending tens of billions of dollars on an annual basis for AI-related research, cloud computing, and IT infrastructure. This scale of spending makes it necessary, as well as logical, for the U.S. government to develop collaborative relationships with major technology companies. 

According to U.S. federal budget disclosures, the government spends tens of billions of dollars annually on AI, cloud computing, and advanced IT infrastructure, making collaboration both practical and necessary.

A good way to think about this type of partnership is that the U.S. government sets the direction and boundaries, and the technology companies have the capacity to implement them.

Apple’s Position on AI for Privacy at the National Level

Apple approaches its contribution to AI technology through its long-held philosophy of developing for privacy first.

Unlike many firms that are focused on AI as their core business, Apple applies the AI function directly to consumer devices and thereby allows the consumer to have direct control over all the data utilized, limiting data spread to various locations and promoting the concept of data being processed on the device rather than transferred via a network to or from the cloud. It also reports over 1 billion active devices globally, giving it unmatched experience in secure, large-scale AI deployment. Apple invests billions of dollars annually in machine learning and custom silicon, including AI-optimized chips designed to process data locally.

Apple models of this way of doing business are particularly relevant for government agencies that manage sensitive information about their citizens, which are critical aspects of protecting America’s national security and the rights of its citizens.

Foundational Information on Apple’s Model and Its Value to Society 

Apple’s devices have over 1B active users across the globe, making Apple one of the leaders in providing experience and infrastructure of secure deployment.

Apple invests billions of dollars each year in machine learning and silicon design, as well as designing Apple’s proprietary AI chips.

On-device AI reduces and/or eliminates the need for dependency upon centralized systems and aligns with the data security efforts mandated through federal laws.

When Apple engages in discussions that involve developing public policies, it contributes the perspective of consumer trust and helps create a reasonable balance between innovation and restraint, an important balance to public institutions.

Role of OpenAI and Frontier Models

OpenAI operates in a different part of the AI Landscape than the other companies, and its primary focus is on building frontier-scale models that enable Reasoning, Language Processing, and Decision Support applications across multiple industries.

With Government Agencies, this means they can:

  • Conduct Policy Analysis More Quickly
  • Provide More Efficient Digital Services to Citizens
  • Accelerate the Rate of Research and Development

OpenAI’s models now serve hundreds of millions of users worldwide, demonstrating operational maturity at scale. OpenAI has already deployed its models at scale to Hundreds of Millions of Users Worldwide. As such, they have reached Operational Maturity. Additionally, OpenAI works with Regulators to develop Safety Frameworks, Evaluation Standards, and for the Responsible Use of AI Technology.

This is a very Important Topic for the Public Sector; therefore, there can be no ambiguity within the AI Sector, there needs to be a Clear Line of Sight between Model and Policy Alignment.

AI companies have undergone a shift recently. Instead of simply reacting to Regulations, they are now also actively participating in developing regulations.

Amazon Services’ Importance to Government AI

Amazon builds the foundational infrastructure of an artificial intelligence ecosystem through AWS and its AI services, enabling government agencies to deploy models securely, monitor performance, and scale operations as needed.

AWS supports thousands of government workloads globally, including mission-critical systems across defense and civilian agencies.

The rate of cloud adoption by Federal Government Agencies has increased dramatically, with most federal civilian agencies now running their mission-critical workloads within hybrid or cloud-based environments.

  • Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the cloud provider for thousands of government workloads around the globe.
  • AWS provides government organizations with unique compliance frameworks for compliance with AI technology.
  • AI Sector Services have been embedded into the Logistics, Cyber Security Monitoring, and Data Analytics industries.

Although most citizens do not see the direct impact of AWS today, AWS has had an enormous impact on the operational systems that government agencies rely on, such that they are now an integral part of their operations.

Building a New Public/Private AI Model

A distinct difference between the current technology-related efforts to develop public sector AI and previous attempts to develop technology in the public sector is that, instead of continuing to award an ad hoc approach to contract opportunities, the current direction will provide an emphasis on:

  • Long-term Collaboration
  • Shared Accountability
  • Transparent Governance Models

The above-mentioned framework is based on what has been learned from past digital transformation initiatives. Large-scale AI technology will influence the way people work. AI will require changes in how we monitor the overall technology and make decisions based on how AI technology impacts people, organizations, and society as a whole.

As a result of these discussions with government leaders as they continue to develop the technology, the federal leaders have communicated through policy and training materials that working with AI will include a requirement for having a standardised evaluation process, secure data exchange protocols, and ongoing workforce training in AI.

If you’re in a technical profession such as security, compliance, or digital strategy, it is important to note that there are some key factors to consider when deciding if your company will be affected by these developments, as compared to how your company operates currently.

For example:

  • Public sector standards will often become benchmarks for private-sector companies.
  • AI governance will inform enterprise risk models.
  • Workforce expectations around AI adoption will shift; AI literacy will soon become the lowest level of workforce competency.

And so, it might be helpful for you to consider a basic question: If the Federal Government purchases this model of AI technology, how quickly will your company and industry implement similar technology?

Most of the time, the answer will be within a few months of the Government making its decision.

In addition to these changes, there is also a fundamental cultural change taking place within both groups of technology leaders and policy makers. Technology leaders have been educated and trained to think about responsibility and accountability in the context of technology use, just as policymakers are being educated about models, data pipelines, and evaluation methods for AI.

The new vocabulary that has been developed by both groups will provide them with a common understanding of the issues concerning responsibility and governance in technology. Many long-serving professionals in both groups find it hard to believe how quickly these changes have occurred and how rapidly this transformation is happening again.

Conclusion

The United States government’s AI technology working group is a demonstration of a collaborative and future-oriented vision toward growing innovation within the country. Through partnerships between the federal government and major technology firms, both parties can leverage the most advanced AI technologies while providing guidelines on best practices for maintaining trust in, governing, and responsibly using AI. Furthermore, this collaboration between the two sectors demonstrates that, in addition to achieving technological development, the success of AI is based on the ability to implement policies and standards, so, as such, the gap between AI policy and AI practice is closing, and remaining current is necessary for professionals and decision-makers.

FAQs

1. Why are the largest technology companies partnering with the U.S. government?

The major technology companies provide tried and true tools and systems that drive faster, safer implementations of AI.

2. Does this partnership eliminate government control over AI?

No. The U.S. government provides the oversight and direction to the industry, while the technology companies provide the capability.

3. How will this impact businesses that aren’t part of the government?

The public sector sets standards around the use of AI that will ultimately lead to best practices for enterprise implementation.

4. Does this collaboration only focus on innovation?

No. In addition to innovation, this collaboration is focused on establishing frameworks for best governance practices, establishing talent readiness, and deploying AI responsibly.

5. Why should the professional community remain engaged with this change in focus?

Because these frameworks will set the pace and direction of future regulations, skills needs, and the adoption and use of AI by businesses across all sectors.

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