The White House recently published a fact sheet for President Biden’s Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence.

What does this mean to companies in the private sector? And what does it mean for your privacy compliance?

Let’s take a look.

Lots of work for government contractors

Government contractors developing AI will be required to:

  • Abide by new guidance regarding government agencies’ use of AI
  • Adopt leading-edge privacy preserving technologies which will be required by federal agencies
  • Adhere to NIST standards for all AI developed
  • Adhere to DOC guidance regarding content authentication and watermarking to clearly label AI-generated content
  • Adhere to additional guidance relating to national security
  • Notify and share test results with the government: Developers of any foundation model that poses a serious risk to national security, national economic security, or national public health and safety must notify the federal government when training the model

Lots of work for the private sector

There is an emphasis on employers, healthcare and education

  • Employers will need to abide by newly developed principles and best practices on mitigating harms of AI for employees (including re: employee mobility and privacy)
  • Healthcare providers will be required to use AI responsibly, including by following new rules from the HHS.
  • Educational institutions will be bound by new rules regarding AI enabled educational tools
  • Landlords, federal benefits programs and federal contractors must keep AI algorithms from being used to exacerbate discrimination
  • Everyone must make sure to avoid algorithmic discrimination because the Federal government will enforce

Is a Privacy Bill coming?

Biden wants Congress to pass a federal privacy bill

  • “To better protect Americans’ privacy, including from the risks posed by AI, the President calls on Congress to pass bipartisan data privacy legislation to protect all Americans, especially kids.”
  • Federal government will prioritize support for accelerating the development and use of privacy-preserving techniques
  • A Research Coordination Network will advance privacy preserving research and technology; they will be adopted and required by Federal government agencies when dealing with contractors
  • Government agencies will reassess how they collect and use public information (including from data brokers) and be bound by stronger privacy requirements