Another United States Governor is using their power to study the positives and negatives of AI. Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed an Executive Order on February 14 to establish an AI Strategic Task Force that will study the impact of AI and generative AI on the state. The 25-member task force, co-chaired by the Secretaries of Economic Development and Technology Services, will develop recommendations on how Massachusetts can support businesses in adopting AI and position itself as a leader in the technology. It will have industry-specific working groups for key sectors like healthcare, life sciences, and education.

The mission is to find ways to encourage leading industries to adopt AI to ensure the state’s continued economic success. Recommendations will focus on helping startups scale and promoting Massachusetts as a hub for AI talent and business excellence. Launching the task force delivers on the administration’s economic plan to keep Massachusetts at the forefront of emerging technologies.

The administration also announced a partnership with Northeastern University on InnovateMA to use AI across state government. This will help test ways generative AI can improve efficiency and accessibility of services. Northeastern co-ops have started assisting the state in implementing AI for several use cases like improving policy navigation for agencies, predicting grant eligibility, and enhancing public transportation services.

Governor Healey will also seek $100 million in economic legislation to create an Applied AI Hub to support adopting AI capabilities in the public and private sectors. The Governor believes this will help position Massachusetts to act on the task force’s strategic goals.

The task force includes leaders from academia, industry, and government. It will begin meeting this month and make final recommendations later this year. Members will collaborate on strategies leveraging AI’s benefits for the economy and local communities. The administration acknowledges AI as a transformative technology and wants to proactively embrace its potential while ensuring proper safeguards.

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