Nevada

Public- and private-sector leaders are guarding against artificially generated impersonations, AI-generated disinformation and scams. But, officials say, their task is becoming increasingly difficult and complex.

Michael Sherwood, Las Vegas’ longtime chief innovation and technology officer, left the position late last year. The city’s deputy information technology director has been elevated to acting IT director.

The Nevada Highway Patrol will begin using a thermal imaging van that officials hope will help the agency focus on the most problematic trucks and perhaps even combat human trafficking.

The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada is using artificial intelligence, machine learning and real-time data analysis to keep its facilities safe and improve response times to traffic incidents.

IT officials in Massachusetts and Nevada discussed their plans to do more with data, filling leadership roles, building integrated data systems and enhancing security. Work is already underway.

An ecologist at the University of Nevada, Reno, is developing software to help the Bureau of Land Management analyze the condition of the state's landscapes and develop responsible grazing plans.

The city’s former Director of IT Alyssa Rodriguez has been appointed chief infrastructure officer/assistant city manager. Russell Nelson, now acting director of IT, had been Henderson’s deputy CIO for more than a decade.

Nevada Department of Health and Human Services helps fund Waterford Upstart, an at-home early learning program that provides 4-year-olds with educational foundations in key areas.

ZeroEyes, a firm that is based in Pennsylvania, has created an AI-based gun detection video analytics platform that continues getting its technology into public organizations nationwide.

The application, DROPS, or Direct Resource Outreach and Placement Service, enables city staff to create and track digitized case files. It’s intended to streamline access to resources and avoid disconnections in the process.

Lithium is a mineral that is used to make electric vehicle batteries, and right now, the only functional lithium mine in the entire country is located in rural Esmeralda County, Nev.

Technology like mobile apps and data visualization dashboards is helping the state serve more of its residents — often without them having to leave their homes.

Plus, Nevada gets $250 million for broadband, data unveils the barriers to digital equity for Asian Americans, and the federal government is eyeing 6G.

A new report from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation advises states and regions to consider a range of connectivity issues, before deciding how to best spend federal infrastructure funding on high-speed Internet.

After Nevada released AI guidelines last fall, CIO Tim Galluzi talked at NASCIO about how they’re using GenAI in the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation to streamline processes.

Through town halls and online surveys, state officials are taking input from educators, students, families and community members to write an ethics statement on the use of AI in the classroom. It’s expected by June.

Jason Benshoof, Nevada’s first-ever state chief data officer, said teamwork among agencies will help keep data initiatives in line with community priorities. A state staffer since 2009, he was named CDO Feb. 12.

Jason Benshoof, the former chief IT manager of the Client Services Unit in the Nevada Office of the CIO, will lead the state’s data governance efforts as CDO. A longtime Nevada executive, he will also develop and implement a statewide data plan.