Other reports in this series:

• Government AI Hire, Use, Buy (HUB) Roundtable Series – Roundtable 1: Government as a User of AI
• Government AI Hire, Use, Buy (HUB) Roundtable Series – Roundtable 3: Government as a Buyer of AI
• Government AI Hire, Use, Buy (HUB) Roundtable Series – Roundtable 4: Capstone

Introduction

Artificial intelligence has rapidly proliferated throughout the U.S. and global economy, including in government services and functions. As a result, many people are looking to the U.S. government as a standard-bearer for how to responsibly adopt and use AI. In late 2023, President Joe Biden signed the groundbreaking Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, which laid out a road map for how the U.S. government would set this example.¹ This EO is complemented by other efforts, such as the Office of Management and Budget’s policy, Advancing Governance, Innovation, and Risk Management for Agency Use of Artificial Intelligence.²

However, the challenges that the government faces in acquiring and deploying AI systems—or hiring the talent to build them—are far from solved. It is with this in mind that Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) and Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation (Beeck Center), together with the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law and Policy (Tech Institute), led a series of invite-only roundtables over the course of 2024 to discuss the government’s role in the use of AI. This resulting report was authored in 2024 after those discussions.

The Government AI Hire, Use, Buy (HUB) Roundtable Series is bringing together leading voices to grapple with the questions that AI poses. The series examines three key roles the government is poised to play:

1. As a user of AI.
2. As an employer of AI talent.
3. As a buyer of AI.

The series seeks to illuminate important hurdles and possible solutions in each of these areas as AI stands to potentially transform government services and operations. The series is generously funded by a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation.

On August 22, 2024, CSET hosted the second roundtable in the series. This event focused on the government’s role as an employer of AI talent and followed the first roundtable, hosted by the Tech Institute, examining the government as a user of AI.

This report summarizes and reflects on the key findings, takeaways, and recommendations from the second roundtable, which was conducted under the Chatham House Rule. All names, affiliations, and other identifying information have been omitted from this report. Recommendations mentioned in this report reflect those made by participants during the roundtable and do not necessarily reflect formal recommendations issued by CSET, the Tech Institute, or Beeck Center.

1. Exec. Order No. 14110, 88 FR 75191 (2023), www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/11/01/2023-24283/safe-secure-and-trustworthy-development-and-use-of-artificial-intelligence.Footnote Link
2. Director of Office of Management and Budget, Advancing Governance, Innovation, and Risk Management for Agency Use of Artificial Intelligence, M-24-10, March 28, 2024, www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/M-24-10-Advancing-Governance-Innovation-and-Risk-Management-for-Agency-Use-of-Artificial-Intelligence.pdf.Footnote Link