Emerging Tech

This week, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries announced the establishment of a new task force that will help Congress to better understand artificial intelligence and its related risks.

A plan to limit police use of facial recognition technology is likely to pass in this year’s session of the General Assembly. The bill would allow police to use the tools to investigate violent crimes and serious offenses.

Colleges and universities are increasing investments in new supercomputer infrastructure for both research and classroom applications, especially in physics, astronomical sciences and communications.

This week, Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order to establish the Artificial Intelligence Strategic Task Force in order to better understand the potential impacts of AI and GenAI.

Falling prices, increased availability and incentives are giving the secondhand electric vehicle market the thrust it needs to grow, introducing the vehicles to a wider cross-section of consumers.

Brookings Institution panelists considered how the proliferation of generative AI tools, weakening of social media platform trust and safety teams, and drawdown in federal communications with social media firms will impact the the 2024 elections.

The ShotSpotter gunshot detection system has worn a bull's-eye among progressives in Chicago for years, and now Mayor Brandon Johnson says he will make good on his campaign promise to get rid of the technology.

A new feature being tested with a small user group would allow ChatGPT to memorize information and data about its users. The software would recall personal preferences to customize the user experience, company officials say.

The legislation would set mandatory AI safety testing requirements before training or market release and would mandate an internal fail-safe be included in all AI systems to trigger an immediate shutdown if issues are detected.

In accordance with President Joe Biden’s 2023 executive order on artificial intelligence, the federal government is moving forward with key actions — namely, the creation of an AI safety consortium.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey is aligning with national trends on AI regulation, establishing a task force via executive order to examine the current and future applications of the technology in state government.

A cyclist was injured in a collision with a Waymo driverless vehicle in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood this week. This news comes after Cruise, another autonomous car company, recalled its entire fleet nationwide.

An order signed by Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser today takes three specific actions to advance the government’s adoption of artificial intelligence. The plan aims to align the technology with the District’s core values.

In a hearing titled “Navigating the Future of Artificial Intelligence,” lawmakers heard testimony from experts at IBM, TechNet and Harrisburg University — as well as testimony directly from ChatGPT.

A University at Albany research team conducted a study on how 22 state government agencies are harnessing chatbot technology, uncovering valuable insights into the challenges faced and lessons learned.

Lithium-ion battery fires are becoming increasingly common as electric vehicles spread, and are hard to extinguish. A new approach uses an electrolyte based on a commercial fire extinguisher.

Artificial intelligence was used to create pornographic deepfake images of six Alabama middle schoolers, prompting one state senator to propose new legislation that would make the practice a felony punishable by up to 20 years.

New generative AI tools are poised to make an even bigger impact in state and local government in the year ahead. Jurisdictions need to understand their potential uses and how they will impact resident services.