Future of AI Innovation Act

Summary#

This bill creates a new Center for Artificial Intelligence Standards and Innovation at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The Center will help develop voluntary AI testing standards, metrics, evaluation tools, and best practices. The bill also requires an interagency program to run AI testbeds using national labs and other partners. It calls for public datasets for AI, a program of federal "grand challenges" with prizes, international coordination on standards, and limits on access to Center resources by entities controlled by certain foreign governments. The bill includes rules on research security, hiring technical experts at NIST, and audits of temporary fellows who work for agencies.

What it means for you#

• If you work in AI research or development: the bill creates voluntary testing programs, testbeds, and public datasets that you may use to evaluate and improve models. Foundation model vendors can opt into voluntary testing programs.
• If you work at or with industry, academia, or civil society: you may be invited to join a NIST-led consortium and contribute expertise to develop voluntary standards and tools.
• If you are a small or medium business: the bill explicitly aims to help companies of all sizes access testbeds and standards work, and to encourage public-private partnerships.
• If you are a researcher funded by the federal government: agencies may require disclosure of nonproprietary, nonsensitive datasets used in research, and there will be priorities for creating or improving 20 public datasets.
• If you are involved in international standards work: the bill directs U.S. officials to form alliances with like-minded countries and to exclude the People's Republic of China from certain coalitions until specified conditions are met.
• If you are a temporary fellow or agency official: temporary fellows must certify they will not perform inherently governmental functions, and agencies must audit fellow use annually.

Expenses#

No publicly available information. The bill text establishes programs, partnerships, and reports, but does not include cost estimates or specific appropriations in the provided text.

Proponents' View#

The bill text describes its purpose as supporting voluntary, consensus-based AI standards, building testbeds and public datasets, accelerating AI research and commercialization through prize competitions, protecting research security, and helping companies of all sizes succeed. It directs coordination among NIST, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, national laboratories, and private sector partners to develop measurement tools, evaluation methods, and best practices.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.