As AI is increasingly established as a world-changing field, the U.S. has an opportunity not only to demonstrate global leadership, but to establish a solid economic foundation for the future of the technology.
A panel of experts convened last week at GTC to shed light on this topic, with the co-chairs of the Congressional AI Caucus, U.S. Reps. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), leading a discussion that reflects Washington's growing interest in the topic.
The panel also included Hodan Omaar, AI policy lead at the Center for Data Innovation; Russell Wald, director of policy at Stanford University's Institute for Human-Centered AI and Damon Woodard, director of AI partnerships at University of Florida's AI Initiative.
AI is getting increased interest among my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and this is going to continue for some time, McNerney said. Given that momentum, Gonzalez said the U.S. should be on the bleeding edge of AI development for both economic and geopolitical reasons.
Along those lines, the first thing the pair wanted to learn was how panelists viewed the importance of legislative efforts to fund and support AI research and development.
Wald expressed enthusiasm over legislation Congress passed last year as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, which he said would have an expansive effect on the market for AI.
Wald also said he was surprised at the findings of Stanford's Government by Algorithm report, which detailed the federal government's use of AI to do things such as track suicide risk among veterans, support SEC insider trading investigations and identify Medicare fraud.
Woodard suggested that continued leadership and innovation coming from Washington is critical if AI is to deliver on its promise.
AI can play a big role in the economy, said Woodard. Having this kind of input from the government is important before we can have the kind of advancements that we need.
The Role of Universities Woodard and UF are already doing their part. Woodard's role at the school includes helping transform it into a so-called AI university. In response to a question from Gonzalez about what that transition looks like, he said it required establishing a world-class AI infrastructure, performing cutting-edge AI research and incorporating AI throughout the curriculum.
We want to make sure every student has some exposure to AI as it relates to their field of study, said Woodard.
He said the school has more than 200 faculty members engaged in AI-related research, and that it's committed to hiring 100 more. And while Woodard believes the university's efforts will lead to more qualified AI professionals and AI innovation around its campus in Gainesville, he also said that partnerships, especially those that encourage diversity, are critical to encouraging more widespread industry development.
Along those lines, UF has joined an engineering consortium and will provide 15 historically Black colleges and two Hispanic-serving schools with access to its prodigious AI resources.
Omaar said such efforts are especially important when considering how unequally the high performance computing resources needed to conduct AI research are distributed.
In response to a question from McNerney about a recent National Science Foundation report, Omaar noted the finding that the U.S. Department of Energy is only providing support to about a third of the researchers seeking access to HPC resources.
Many universities are conducting AI research without the tools they need, she said.
Omaar said she'd like to see the NSF focus its funding on supporting efforts in states where HPC resources are scarce but AI research activity is high.
McNerney announced that he would soon introduce legislation requiring NSF to determine what AI resources are necessary for significant research output.
Moving Toward National AI Research Resources The myriad challenges points to the benefits that could come from a more coordinated national effort. To that end, Gonzalez asked about the potential of the National AI Research Resource Task Force Act, and the national AI research cloud that would result from it.
Wald called the legislation a game-changing AI initiative, noting that the limited number of universities with AI research computing resources has pushed AI research into the private sector, where the objectives are driven by shorter-term financial goals rather than long-term societal benefits.
What we see is an imbalance in the AI research ecosystem, Wald said. The federal legislation would establish a pathway for a national AI research hub, which has the potential to unleash American AI innovation, he said.
The way Omaar sees it, the nationwide collaboration that would likely result - among politicians, industry and academia - is necessary for AI to reach its potential.
Since AI will impact us all, she said, it's going to need everyone's contribution.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
The An Evening with Emerson, Lake and Palmer tour brings one of rock's most iconic bands back to the stage. These performances seamlessly blend live foota...
30/09/2026
Schibsted Media, one of Norways largest and most influential digital media publishers and content producers, has invested in mixers and digital signal processor...
30/09/2026
Big Blue Marble announces the addition of live multiview channels to Cloud Video Kit, its broadcast-grade video processing platform. The feature is powered by A...
30/09/2026
Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Telekom Slovenije, Slovenia's largest provider of telecommunications and TV services, is open...
30/09/2026
PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Conference featuring 24 sessions over two days ...
30/09/2026
IBC2026 Show Report
David Kirk September 29, 2026
0 Comments
The International Broadcasting Convention has long been Europe's equivalent of the US...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...
30/09/2026
How to Shop Well Now starts Monday at 9.35pm
on RT One and RT Player
On the...
30/09/2026
Building on nearly a decade of co-engineering, CoreWeave has built NVIDIA compute, networking and software into a cloud purpose-built for AI that's still re...
29/09/2026
Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...
29/09/2026
SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...
29/09/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...
29/09/2026
Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...
29/09/2026
FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...
29/09/2026
Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...
29/09/2026
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...
29/09/2026
REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...
29/09/2026
Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...
29/09/2026
NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...
29/09/2026
19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary
LOS ...
29/09/2026
Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles
Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...
29/09/2026
All-in-one bus processor revealed
Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...
29/09/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...
29/09/2026
Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...
29/09/2026
Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...
29/09/2026
Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...
29/09/2026
Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Clear-Com announced that First Baptist Nashville has upgraded its production communications with a Clear-Com intercom solution as part of a comprehensive sanct...
29/09/2026
Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch
Brie Clayton September 28, 2026
0 Comments
Camera's portable design and dynamic range...
29/09/2026
Kean Production Services Deploys AJA ColorBox to Deliver Consistent, Accurate Co...
As AI is increasingly established as a world-changing field, the U.S. has an opportunity not only to demonstrate global leadership, but to establish a solid economic foundation for the future of the technology.
