Artificial intelligence (AI) systems have raised concerns in the public—some speculative and some based in contemporary experience. Some of these concerns overlap with concerns about privacy of data, some relate to the effectiveness of AI systems and some relate to the possibility of the misapplication of the technology. At the same time, the development of AI technology is seen as a matter of national priority, and fears of losing the “AI technology race” fuel national efforts to support its development.

The healthcare and life sciences sectors are highly influenced by US government policy; accordingly, these industry sectors should monitor carefully US government policy pronouncements on AI. This special report is the first of two that will review the US government’s overarching national policy on AI, as articulated in Executive Order 13,859, “Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence” (Executive Order), and the related draft Office of Management and Budget memorandum entitled “Guidance for Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Applications” (Draft Memo). While these two special reports will provide a high-level review of these documents, they will also highlight certain aspects and other recent developments that may be related to the Executive Order and the Draft Memo...