Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis - Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Governor Tate Reeves’ office has announced he will sign an Executive Order Wednesday establishing state standards for regulating AI.
States across the country are moving to establish a framework for the responsible use and deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies within state government, while also balancing innovation with ethical standards and public accountability.
Last year, in his State of the State Address, Governor Reeves called for the creation of a task force to improve technology across state government.
“By improving technology and ensuring it’s implemented in a way that matches actual workflow, we can streamline processes at agencies, reduce the time it takes to complete tasks, share information more easily, and provide more efficient, effective services for Mississippians,” Reeves said in his address.
Mississippi remains one of 20 states without significant AI legislation.
Senate Bill 2062, introduced by State Senator Chris Johnson (R), Chair of the Government Structure Committee, would have created a task force to study potential applications of, and develop policy recommendations for, AI in K-12 classrooms in Mississippi, but it died on the calendar in the 2024 session.
Last fall, Senate Technology Chair Bart Williams (R) and House Technology Chair Jill Ford (R) spearheaded two days of technology hearings at the Capitol for technology committee members and other lawmakers to discuss AI implications.
In December, a panel discussion was held at the Workforce Development Center on the Ridgeland campus of Holmes Community College to address barriers to AI implementation.
Panelists included:
- Mississippi Development Authority executive director Bill Cork;
- Accelerate MS executive director Dr. Courtney Taylor;
- Kevin Blystone of Ocean Aero, a manufacturer of autonomous drones for the ocean, which moved its headquarters from San Diego, Calif., to Gulfport in 2022;
- Dani Devito, who covers Nvidia’s higher education research team;
- John Reece of WISPR Systems;
- JJ Childress of Microsoft, who oversees the TechSpark initiative; and
- De-Keither Stamps of the Mississippi Public Service Commission.
“We’re seeing an evolution in how learning is happening. Most times, technology moves faster than we can update curriculums in schools,” Devito said.
Taylor pointed out efforts are ongoing to keep pace with demand.
“It’s not about checking boxes at this point,” she said. “It’s about enhancing reasoning skills … so new technology can be tackled when it comes in, because we know at this point it’s not going to stop,” she said.
Technologies such as Google’s Willow were highlighted. The quantum processing unit can complete complex calculations that would take traditional supercomputers millions of years in as few as five minutes.
MDA Director Cork hinted at additional investment in technology and data coming to Mississippi during the panel. “We’ll announce another massive cluster in the state, probably another massive announcement in the first quarter,” he said.
The Governor’s EO is expected to provide a framework for regulation of AI, give state agencies guidance on identifying potential risks and harms related to AI, emphasize the importance of ethical considerations in the use of AI, and designate the Department of Information Technology Services (ITS) as the primary driver for AI initiatives.
Lynne Jeter
