The government of former President Trump has reached an agreement with OpenAI to provide an enterprise version of the ChatGPT platform to all federal agencies to 'modernize' operations.
According to an announcement from the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) on Wednesday, the agreement allows all U.S. government agencies to use the AI platform for a fee of $1 each, to integrate AI into their workflows.
The GSA, responsible for government procurement, stated that this public-private partnership 'directly supports' the White House's AI action plan, which was recently disclosed by the government to establish U.S. leadership in AI development.
Despite progress in modernization efforts, critics argue that the AI race between nations could negatively impact privacy, data protection policies, censorship, narrative control, cybersecurity, civil liberties, and governance.
The risks of government centralizing AI
In 2023, the U.S. Space Force suspended the use of generative AI tools, including ChatGPT, due to privacy issues related to national security information.
Large language models and AI service providers need to reform data protection standards to be widely used in the military.
Public concern about the use of AI to automate government work is growing as the AI industry develops.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson faced criticism for admitting he consulted AI for policy decisions, but his spokesperson stated that the policy decisions did not involve confidential or sensitive information.
Large language models and AI chatbots absorb a vast amount of data from the internet and user conversations for training, raising privacy concerns due to the centralized storage of information on servers.
ChatGPT conversations could be used as court evidence, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman warning that AI conversations do not enjoy any privacy protection and are subject to government search and seizure laws.
