DoD laying groundwork for 'multi-generational' effort on AI

For the Defense Department, last month's executive order on artificial intelligence was the starting gun, and the department doesn't mean to lose the race it's been preparing for for some time. Air Force Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan, director of the DoD's new Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, told lawmakers that he's already trying to stand up a small office around robotic process automation, a specific type of AI aimed towards improving business practices. He said he's already met with the department's chief management officer and chief data officer to discuss the matter, which he's convinced will yield many opportunities to help augment people currently doing those jobs. It's early in the process; he said the department wasn't concentrating on RPA a few months ago. But he's already prioritizing, and he thinks finance will be the first place to apply the new technology.