This follows President Joe Biden’s executive order on artificial intelligence last month.

“In last month’s Executive Order, the President called on DHS to promote the adoption of AI safety standards globally and help ensure the safe, secure, and responsible use and development of AI,” said Alejandro N. Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security.

“CISA’s roadmap lays out the steps that the agency will take as part of our Department’s broader efforts to both leverage AI and mitigate its risks to our critical infrastructure and cyber defenses”, he added.

Initially, the organization will conscientiously employ AI to fortify cyber defense in adherence to relevant laws and policies, encompassing those governing federal procurement, privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties.

Subsequently, there will be an evaluation of AI systems to ensure they are inherently secure. This initiative aims to promote the adoption of safe AI practices across federal civilian government agencies, private sector entities, and state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) governments. CISA will pioneer the development of best practices for secure AI deployment and formulate recommendations for red-teaming generative AI.

Thirdly, the organization will actively engage with companies to safeguard critical infrastructure against malicious AI applications. Collaboration will revolve around identifying and addressing threats, vulnerabilities, and effective mitigations.

Furthermore, it will establish collaborative channels with other agencies, international partners, and the public to devise policy approaches concerning the intersection of security and AI.

“Our Roadmap for AI, focused at the nexus of AI, cyber defense, and critical infrastructure, sets forth an agency-wide plan to promote the beneficial uses of AI to enhance cybersecurity capabilities; ensure AI systems are protected from cyber-based threats; and deter the malicious use of AI capabilities to threaten the critical infrastructure Americans rely on every day”, said Jen Easterly, director of CISA.

And lastly, a key focus will be on expanding the pool of qualified AI professionals within its workforce. This will be achieved through educational initiatives covering AI systems and techniques, coupled with strategic recruitment of individuals possessing the requisite expertise. The internal training program will not only encompass the technical dimensions of AI but will also address the legal, ethical, and policy considerations.

As per the White House’s official statement, this EO sets forth groundbreaking measures to enhance the safety and security of AI technology, safeguard the privacy of American citizens, foster fairness and civil rights, advocate for the interests of consumers and workers, encourage innovation and healthy competition, and bolster the United States’ global leadership in this pivotal field.

The Executive Order details a comprehensive framework that outlines the establishment of new standards and best practices intended to guarantee the safety and security of AI, which includes:

• Requiring developers of AI systems to share safety test results with the government
• Establishing standards, tools, and tests to ensure safety, security, and trustworthiness of AI systems
• Making new standards for biological synthesis screening to prevent AI from being used to create dangerous biological materials
• Creating guidance and best practices for detecting AI-generated content
• Setting up a security program to develop tools that find and fix vulnerabilities using AI
• Developing a National Security Memorandum to guide the direction of further actions on AI and security

Within the EO, President Biden has taken a proactive stance in safeguarding the privacy of American citizens, recognizing the heightened vulnerability of personal data extraction and exploitation in the age of AI. To address these concerns, he is urging Congress to enact data privacy legislation that addresses these pressing issues. Furthermore, he underscores the need for intensified research into privacy-preserving technologies.

To facilitate this research endeavor, President Biden has not only established but also allocated funding for a Research Coordination Network.

In alignment with this comprehensive approach, the EO outlines an intent to evaluate the data collection and utilization practices within government agencies. The goal is to strengthen privacy guidelines for these agencies, further enhancing data protection for citizens.

Moreover, the initiative places a strong emphasis on promoting equity and civil rights in the context of AI. The EO underscores the potential for irresponsible AI usage to exacerbate discrimination, bias, and other injustices within sectors such as justice, healthcare, and housing.

“America already leads in AI innovation—more AI startups raised first-time capital in the United States last year than in the next seven countries combined. The Executive Order ensures that we continue to lead the way in innovation and competition,” the Biden/Harris administration wrote in the EO.

This initiative will establish a multifaceted approach, including the development of a resource tool to grant AI researchers access to essential AI resources and data. This include technical support to small startups and entrepreneurs seeking to bring AI innovations to the commercial market. In addition, the initiative aims to streamline and modernize visa criteria, interviews, and reviews, with a specific focus on broadening opportunities for skilled immigrants engaged in the field of AI technology.

Several AI experts have weighed in on the new executive order.

“We firmly believe in the need to protect AI equivalent to the immense value it can deliver. In order to build and ship AI that is secure and trusted, organizations must rigorously test (“red team”) their AI and understand the total composition of elements used to create that AI, said Ian Swanson, CEO of Protect AI and former head of AI at Amazon.

Nadia Gonzalez, chief marketing officer at Scibids, a company that combines AI and advertising campaigns, believes that the Executive Order is encouraging. It signals that the White House is taking AI seriously and is “moving us away from the patchwork approach that has so far occurred at a state-by-state level,” she said. “AI has the potential to drastically improve how governments operate, protect privacy at large, and promote innovation, but care must be taken to ensure that the regulations go far enough.”

“This executive order from the Biden administration – while directed at federal organizations – follows similar plans by other countries and the EU and is an important step towards ensuring responsible AI use. It will force many organizations to reevaluate their own processes and how they ethically leverage the technology”, added Michael Berthold, CEO of data analysis company KNIME.

In a significant development, the administration is set to provide comprehensive guidance to government agencies on effectively collaborating with Artificial Intelligence (AI). This guidance will encompass facilitating the procurement of AI products and services, as well as expediting the recruitment of AI professionals within the government ranks.

Microsoft President Brad Smith is due to meet UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt this week to discuss the CMA’s decision to block the purchase.

Microsoft President Smith is also expected to meet with Microsoft’s legal team to discuss any counter strategies. This meeting is also likely to discuss the ‘final’ option of withdrawing Activision Blizzard titles from the UK market.

“One of the extreme options could be to bypass the UK order and proceed with the deal or to withdraw Activision from the UK market.”

the report said.

Microsoft is expected to consider the EU’s findings in approving the purchase. In its ruling, the EU said the deal could “kick-start” competition in cloud gaming and streaming. However, the CMA said the deal would give Microsoft an unfair advantage over other companies such as Sony or Nintendo

FedEx and Microsoft will bring together FedEx network intelligence with capabilities from Microsoft Dynamics 365 to introduce a cross-platform “logistics as a service” for retailers, merchants and brands.

The goal is to help brands access new information and capabilities to better fulfill, ship and service customer orders while easily integrating with their existing e-commerce platforms.

This cross-platform approach helps brands deliver experiences directly to their customers including faster, more cost-effective delivery; near real-time delivery status communications; and convenient, frictionless returns with approximately 60,000 drop-off locations and printerless QR codes.

For brands facing increased pressure to build affinity while managing higher order volumes, ensuring cost-effective fulfillment and reducing costly customer service calls, this new technology brings unprecedented opportunity to leverage existing systems of record, optimize fulfillment and deliver on their order promises with increased precision, while benefiting from a more complete view of their customer. Raj Subramaniam, president and COO of FedEx Corp. said:

“Nearly two years ago we set out on a mission with Microsoft to transform the commerce ecosystem. In that time, we’ve made significant progress, leveraging Microsoft Azure technology with our FedEx Surround solution, which provides critical support in enabling advanced monitoring of time-sensitive priority shipments.”

He added:

“This next phase of our collaboration will continue to connect the unmatched supply chain insights from the FedEx network with the Microsoft Cloud to improve e-commerce experiences for brands, merchants and consumers.”

Seamless FedEx data integration with Dynamics 365 Intelligent Order Management is expected to be available to customers in the U.S. in the second half of 2022.