The National Security Agency (NSA) has announced it is creating an AI Security Center to “oversee the development and integration of artificial intelligence capabilities within U.S. national security systems.”
The new center will help foster development of best practices, evaluation methodology, and risk frameworks related to using AI in national security. The NSA will consolidate all of its AI and security-related activities to happen in the AI Security Center.
The NSA will work closely with commercial companies, national labs, academia, the Department of Defense, and select foreign partners on this initiative.
“AI will be increasingly consequential for national security in diplomatic, technological and economic matters for our country and our allies and partners,” said Army Gen. Paul Nakasone, director of the NSA. “Today, the U.S. leads in this critical area, but this lead should not be taken for granted,” he said. “Our adversaries, who have for decades used theft and exploitation of our intellectual property to advance their interests will seek to co-opt our advances in AI and corrupt our application of it.”
This announcement is another in a series of AI-related initiatives from the U.S. government. For example, in January the Department of Defense updated its 2012 guidance around the responsible development of autonomous weapon systems to reflect recent advancements in AI. In 2020, they also published a Responsible AI Strategy and Implementation Pathway.
