Media: cutting AI funding could undermine US position in this field
The actions of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), aimed at reducing funding for science and technology agencies, may spoil the US position in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), TASS reports
Axios portal, citing a letter from US tech companies to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, said, “We caution that downsizing NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) or eliminating these initiatives will have ramifications for the ability of the American AI industry to continue to lead globally.”
The letter also expresses the view that continued funding for NIST ‘will ensure that America continues to lead in AI and other emerging technologies’.
More than 70 probationary NIST employees were fired last week. Moreover, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) laid off 170 employees last month, many of whom were experts in AI. About half of the NSF employees were later reinstated by court order.
