OMB Creating New Information Gathering Standards to Enable AI-Ready Data

U.S. Chief Data Scientist Dominique Duval-Diop said the Office of Management and Budget is developing new data collection standards for race and ethnicity and identifying best practices for gathering sexual identity data.

The OMB’s effort is part of an ongoing initiative involving executive agencies aimed at getting data ready for artificial intelligence to enable data-driven policymaking within federal agencies.

Speaking at a Friday panel hosted by the Atlantic Council, Duval-Diop said making data AI-ready comes with challenges, noting that all data carries some bias, FCW reported. She added that resolving the issue requires assessing the inequities embedded in data systems generating data used to create AI tools.

According to the chief data scientist, OMB’s development of new standards will help address some of the data collection and handling challenges. The agency is also creating policy guidance on the usage of AI systems in the U.S. government, with plans to release a draft this summer to seek public comments.