Creating a tech equity agenda to advance American democracy

The modern world is shaped by technological innovation, from the exploratory potential of spacecraft to the promise of artificial intelligence systems. These and other emerging technologies are improving how we live our lives and modernize government operations and can create efficiencies that lend themselves to better public institutions and more participatory democracy. But these same technologies can create intended and unintended consequences for democratic processes and risks to citizens, who deserve a new digital ecosystem that advances well-being and prosperity.

What’s more, what are the consumer and worker protections necessary for the equitable and fair deployment of emerging technologies and to mitigate racial bias and social inequities? How can we advance the nation’s aspiration for a more diverse science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce? What would responsible and rights-preserving science and technology systems look like in our criminal justice system? How can we protect free speech while also addressing the spread of misinformation and disinformation online?

On October 21, the Center for Technology Innovation at Brookings hosted Alondra Nelson, deputy director for science and society at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, for a wide-ranging conversation with Senior Fellow Nicol Turner Lee on these and other topics.

Viewers submitted questions for speakers by emailing [email protected] or via Twitter at @BrookingsGov by using #TechForAll.

For the RFI on Public and Private Sector Uses of Biometric Technologies, OSTP is soliciting input which can be sent to [email protected]. Regarding the Bill of Rights for automated society and broader AI equity efforts, OSTP looks forward to hearing from public at [email protected].