USACM and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) have teamed up to petition the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy to construct and publicize a formal process by which the public might have input into the work of the recently-named Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence. Several associations and currently about 75 individual professionals, many ACM members, have signed on to the letter. You may have received an email message abut this recently from SIGAI.
The petition states that “The undersigned technical experts, legal scholars, and affiliated organizations formally request that the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) undertake a Request for Information (RFI) and solicit public comments so as to encourage meaningful public participation in the development of the nation s policy for Artificial Intelligence. This request follows from the recent establishment of a Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence and a similar OSTP RFI that occurred in 2016.”
Any technical expert with a relevant background, irrespective of ACM affiliation, who is interested in signing the letter should e-mail Jeramie Scott <jscott@epic.org> and Adam Eisgrau <eisgrau@hq.acm.org> as soon as possible. A goal is to have 100 individual signers on the letter, and the organizers hope to send the petition to the White House shortly after the July 4th holiday. If you would like to be added to the letter, send your information providing your name, title, and what school, company, or other affiliation (for ID purposes only) that you would like listed.