Georgia state officials this week told StateScoop they\u2019re developing an \u201cinnovation lab\u201d \u2014 a digital and physical space where they can match the latest technologies, like artificial intelligence, with agency challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The idea for the coming lab was partially born out of the avalanche of AI tools that vendors are thrusting in front of government tech leaders. Nikhil Deshpande, Georgia\u2019s chief digital and AI officer, told StateScoop he expects the new lab to be launched soon \u2014 \u201cnot weeks, but months, but definitely not years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cToday we see a lot of AI applications and demos and also as agencies we understand we have a certain need, a certain gap that needs to be filled,\u201d Deshpande said. \u201cThe lab will give that needed space to give these proof of concepts in [the Georgia Technology Authority\u2019s] controlled sandbox environment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deshpande said officials plan eventually to establish a \u201croster\u201d of vendors that are authorized to participate in the lab to help agencies solve various problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe vendor partners will have the opportunity to directly present their solutions in the context of agencies\u2019 business challenges and propose directly to agencies how some of these technologies could be fixing these gaps,\u201d he said. \u201cIn no way is this a way of advocating for a certain technology. It\u2019s purely a solution space, so we\u2019ll be focusing on what the problem is and we\u2019ll be looking at how can we solve the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While AI is unavoidable in 2024, Deshpande said the lab is designed to be technology-agnostic, intended to center around government challenges and stay relevant for whatever new technologies emerge in the coming months and years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe lab really is one way to expedite the development, testing, implementation of these solutions, most powered by some of the new emerging technologies, such as AI,\u201d he said. \u201cThe AI revolution has reset some of the attention of some agencies to really focus on some of these problems in the hopes that the new emerging technologies can be a solution to fix those problems, so GTA is purely providing that ground to conduct these experiments.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The lab is one third of a statewide AI initiative, alongside an AI governance framework and AI training for state employees. Led by the state\u2019s technology department, the Georgia Technology Authority, the state\u2019s AI effort also recruits the help of other government agencies, higher education institutions and the private sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Georgia officials last month convened the inaugural meeting of a new, 14-member AI council, which includes AI experts from Georgia Tech and Georgia State, private sector AI experts, Georgia agency chief information officers and statewide CIO Shawnzia Thomas, Deshpande said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said the group\u2019s first monthly meeting reaffirmed the importance of AI ethics, data governance and AI training and standards. With the aid of Rose Procter, executive director of the TRUIST Center for Ethical Leadership at the University of North Georgia and a member of the AI council, Deshpande said, Georgia is developing an \u201cethical DNA guide\u201d that establishes \u201cstatewide leadership\u201d for the ethical use of AI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe pretty much confirmed that AI training and a critical focus on the ethical use of these technologies is not a nice-to-have, it is a necessity,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is the initial step before we start using these new technologies. Every state employee must have an updated framework and the training as they work through these technologies, whether they\u2019re using them in their own work or designing them for constituents.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Georgia state officials are planning a digital and in-person innovation lab to match technology vendors with agency challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":205,"featured_media":52234,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_grayscale_images":true,"grayscale_contrast":0,"sponsored_content":false,"display_author_bio":true,"story_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4677,24394],"tags":[24816,23,24118,14818,5272,1843,571,233,30],"people":[24817],"special-report":[],"authors":[4696],"class_list":["post-64491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-state","category-ai","tag-new-technologies","tag-innovation","tag-ethics","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence-ai","tag-technology","tag-nikhil-deshpande","tag-data","tag-georgia","people-nikhil-deshpande","author-colin-wood"],"yoast_head":"\n