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<span data-contrast="none">The federal government is </span><span data-contrast="auto">continuously tracking and focusing on the advancement of</span><span data-contrast="none"> artificial intelligence,</span><span data-contrast="auto"> even more so with another round of </span><a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?530327-1/hearingon-regulatingartificial-intelligence"><span data-contrast="none">Senate hearings</span></a><span data-contrast="auto"> in mid-September. </span><span data-contrast="none">The White House is making it clear that defining standards and best practices for this technology is a priority to ensure safe and ethical use.</span> <span data-contrast="none">AI is becoming more prominent </span><span data-contrast="auto">across</span><span data-contrast="none"> government agencies and is already affecting mission outcomes in key areas such as cybersecurity, healthcare and supply chain rationalization.</span><span data-contrast="auto"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-contrast="auto">This rapidly evolving technology offers federal agencies the opportunity to </span><span data-contrast="none">harness its advancements for innovation and </span><span data-contrast="auto">security – and </span><span data-contrast="none">at the center of </span><span data-contrast="auto">AI’s primary capabilities and offerings </span><span data-contrast="none">is data.</span><span data-contrast="auto"> AI </span><span data-contrast="none">can be challenging to control, but modern data architectures and data management </span><span data-contrast="auto">solutions</span><span data-contrast="none"> can assist in securing and implementing AI</span><span data-contrast="auto">. Effective data management solutions also </span><span data-contrast="none">support a future where </span><span data-contrast="auto">AI</span><span data-contrast="none"> can be used ethically and effectively</span><span data-contrast="auto">.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>
<h2><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>The current direction of AI</h2>
<span data-contrast="auto">The federal government has </span><a href="https://federalnewsnetwork.com/artificial-intelligence/2023/09/draft-omb-memo-details-10-new-requirements-to-manage-ai/"><span data-contrast="none">multiple projects in process</span></a><span data-contrast="auto"> to help agencies enable, implement and utilize AI to support mission objectives. These directions and memos from the government are set to provide guidance for how agencies should properly manage AI.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">In August, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced </span><a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3489803/dod-announces-establishment-of-generative-ai-task-force/"><span data-contrast="none">AI Task Force Lima</span></a><span data-contrast="auto">, a generative AI task force that is committed to helping the department harness the power of AI in a responsible and strategic manner. The government is utilizing AI to solve specific operational problems that federal agencies are running into – however, the complexity of AI is that it is easy to use and difficult to control.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">The U.S. is not the only country making strides with AI. Foreign adversaries are also using this technology to exploit our resources in the cyber realm. Luckily, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a </span><a href="https://www.meritalk.com/articles/white-house-seeks-insight-on-generative-ai-use/"><span data-contrast="none">National AI Strategy in development</span></a><span data-contrast="auto">. This is essential as it will provide federal agencies with guidance when working to take full advantage of the benefits of AI while mitigating the risks.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">The transformative power of generative AI affords the opportunity for the nation to make modernized technological leaps and bounds towards advancements; however, it does come with the risk of serious defensive implications. It’s also key to understand the role of data modernization within the AI process – it helps negate the issues that arise from the advancement of AI by enabling teams access to critical data. </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>
<h2>Data is at the core</h2>
<span data-contrast="none">AI is only as good as the data it is trained on, and</span><span data-contrast="auto"> sound </span><span data-contrast="none">data management is key to having clean data</span><span data-contrast="auto"> that can be used for mission success. </span><span data-contrast="none">With the use of data lakes, a centralized repository that allows</span><span data-contrast="auto"> for the storing of </span><span data-contrast="none">structured and unstructured data</span><span data-contrast="auto">, AI </span><span data-contrast="none">can perfect the process and produce the most effective, dependable results</span><span data-contrast="auto">. </span><span data-contrast="none">Data lakes also assist in tailoring solutions for complex problems.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="none">Functional AI relies on data lakehouses</span><span data-contrast="auto"> – data lakehouses facilitate data literacy and data-driven operations by enhancing trust in data through governance. They increase flexibility to expand AI and analytics while making data more accessible, providing self-service analytics, ensuring data quality and simplifying data security. S</span><span data-contrast="none">orting and organizing clean</span><span data-contrast="auto">, </span><span data-contrast="none">aligned dat</span><span data-contrast="auto">a strengthens AI processes by providing the technology with trusted information.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">Data lakehouses also provide end-to-end capabilities throughout the entire data lifecycle. The advanced data management solution helps organizations run quick analytics on all data; the complex architecture allows running AI and various analytics on the same data without ever moving or locking the data. </span><span data-contrast="none">The advanced analytics of open data lakehouses can provide faster, more accurate and more educated responses to mission needs</span><span data-contrast="auto">, all while enabling modern data architectures to problem-solve efficiently.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">With the movement of massive amounts of data, it’s impossible to not think about security’s role in this whole transaction. Government must be cognizant of how AI impacts data privacy while federal agencies consider the challenges of safeguarding personal, customer and company data among the rapidly evolving AI technology realm and innovations that are fueled by data.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>
<h2>Privacy and security<span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span></h2>
<span data-contrast="auto">A concern of AI technology is privacy and security of the data that is being poured into the technology. It can store users’ past searches and activity to inform future research and development. As security is of utmost importance for government agencies, this must be avoided.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">One option to ensure data privacy is to use enterprise-developed and -hosted language learning models (LLM); open source models can enable agencies to host their AI solutions in-house within their teams without spending a fortune on research, infrastructure and development.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="auto">For example, LLM development enables automation, freeing government employees to do vital higher-level decision-making and essential tasks by allowing the technology of AI to handle lower-level decision-making. Interactions with this model would also be kept in house, eliminating the privacy concerns associated with SaaS LLM solutions, like ChatGPT and Bard.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-contrast="auto"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="none">In the ever-evolving landscape of AI, it is vital to acknowledge and act upon the significant role that modern data architectures and proper data management approaches provide.</span> <span data-contrast="none">The presence of AI is only as successful as its data capabilities.</span> <span data-contrast="none">Data lakes</span><span data-contrast="auto"> and the use of data </span><span data-contrast="none">lakehouses</span><span data-contrast="auto"> enable</span><span data-contrast="none"> the use of AI and LLMs to offset the workload for agencies across the government and manage data more efficiently</span><span data-contrast="auto">, all while remaining secure from threat actors.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-contrast="auto"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<span data-contrast="none">Modern data </span><span data-contrast="auto">approaches</span><span data-contrast="none"> will accelerate the implementation of AI and reduce the chances of creating misinformed solutions. Moving forward, these </span><span data-contrast="auto">AI</span> <span data-contrast="auto">solutions backed by clean, true data</span><span data-contrast="none"> will support </span><span data-contrast="auto">accurate, timely decisions to assist government agencies in driving their mission forward.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

<i><span data-contrast="none">Rob Carey is president of </span></i><a href="https://www.cloudera.com/solutions/public-sector.html"><i><span data-contrast="none">Cloudera Government Solutions</span></i></a><i><span data-contrast="none">.</span></i><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":0,"335559740":240}"> </span>

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