The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) on Thursday announced the launch of a National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Task Force.

The task force is mandated to chart the roadmap for expanding critical resources and educational tools to help the country spur innovation and economic prosperity. The Taskforce is crucial for the US, as it is in a neck-to-neck race with China in AI leadership. Early in June, the US Senate passed a bill to limit China's tech influence, by pumping in $190 billion in additional funding for research and development; the task force follows the bill. 

The task force will be the advisory committee that will ensure that all AI researchers and students from diverse fields will receive adequate support such as computational resources, high-quality data, educational tools, and other user support. The task force will need to submit two reports that will provide Congress a comprehensive AI strategy and an implementation plan. The reports will be submitted in May and then in November 2022. 

The task force will be made up of the stalwarts of the industry - experts from national institutes, revered universities, and industries from across the country. Lynne Parker, the director of the National AI Initiative Office at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, will co-chair the committee, along with Erwin Gianchandani from the National Science Foundation.

“The National AI Research Resource will expand access to the resources and tools that fuel AI research and development, opening opportunities for bright minds from across America to pursue the next breakthroughs in science and technology,” said the Science Advisor to the president and OSTP director Eric Lander.

NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said: “By bringing together the nation’s foremost experts from academia, industry, and government, we will be able to chart an exciting and compelling path forward, ensuring long-term U.S. competitiveness in all fields of science and engineering and all sectors of our economy.”