Congress Seeks Creation of National Research Cloud for Artificial Intelligence

A bipartisan cadre of tech-focused legislators in the House and Senate have introduced legislation that would direct the federal government to develop a national cloud computing infrastructure for artificial intelligence research. Introduced by Sens. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., Thursday, the National Cloud Computing Task Force Act would convene a mix of technical experts across academic, industry and government. The group would develop a nuanced roadmap for how the nation should build, deploy, govern and sustain a national research cloud for AI. "With China focused on toppling the United States' leadership in AI, we need to redouble our efforts with a sustained commitment to the best and brightest by developing a national research cloud to ensure our technical researchers get the tools they need to succeed," Portman said in a statement. "By democratizing access to computing power we ensure that any American with computer science talent can pursue their good ideas."