White House announces nearly $100 million in pledges to boost emerging tech workforce

The White House this week announced almost $100 million in commitments from government, academia and civil society to support government access to a diverse pool of emerging tech talent.

The Office of Science and Technology Policy said in its Tuesday announcement that the National Science Foundation, U.S. Digital Response, a handful of universities and other institutions have pledged funding support for furthering artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies’ talent. 

The commitments were unveiled during an Advancing Public Service in the Technology Ecosystem event, where OSTP Director Arati Prabhakar reflected on the October executive order focused on AI, the Office of Management and Budget’s memo and the work that Congress has been doing to legislate for innovation and against the technology’s harmful effects. 

Looking forward, Prabhakar said the government needs to figure out how to use AI and “wrangle it” in order to upskill, but also emphasized a need for fresh perspectives in the civic tech space.

“We know companies and investors are going to do all kinds of things that can build companies and profits, but also we need AI for public purposes to do the country’s work,” Prabhakar said.  “There’s a lot of work ahead [and] there’s tremendous promise. It all hinges on getting terrific people to come do this work.”

NSF will provide at least $48 million, per a White House fact sheet on the commitments, with $32 million going toward an expansion of the agency’s Emerging and Novel Technologies program aimed at supporting “inclusive experiential learning opportunities” for diverse learners. At least $16 million will support a second round of funding for NSF’s Responsible Design, Development and Deployment of Technologies program, ensuring that ethical, legal and societal considerations are implemented with technology development. 

Additionally, USDR has committed to doubling the number of state and local governments it supports, with a focus on those that are under-resourced.

Academic institutions including San José State University, Spelman College, Georgetown University, the University of Michigan and New York University have pledged material support, new centers, new scholar opportunities with provided tuition and other assistance, collaborations with justice organizations and local governments and collaborations to support inner-institution growth in tech. 

Prabhakar pointed to health care, economic competition and national security as priorities that require the assistance of science and technology. 

“It’s a long list of things that we need to do, and science and technology is absolutely essential for every single one,” Prabhakar said during the event. “These are things we have to do. We don’t actually fully know how to do them — and that means we need science and technology and innovation.”