DOJ hires first chief AI officer to examine internal and external uses

US Attorney General Merrick Garland has appointed the first chief AI officer to the Department of Justice, indicating the technology will face new legal scrutiny.

Jonathan Mayer, a well-known computer science and public policy professor at Princeton University, will serve as both the DOJ’s chief AI officer and as its chief science and technology officer.

Mayer will help the DOJ be “prepared for both the challenges and opportunities that new technologies present,” Garland said in a statement.

According to the DOJ, Mayer’s appointment comes in response to President Joe Biden’s recent executive order on AI, which focuses on making AI tools safe and secure for US residents to use, and requires each federal agency to appoint a chief AI officer to hold primary responsibility “for coordinating their agency’s use of AI, promoting AI innovation in their agency, managing risks from their agency’s use of AI, and carrying out the responsibilities.”

While the responsible use of AI has the potential make the world “more prosperous, productive, innovative, and secure,” irresponsible use can lead to fraud, discrimination, bias, and disinformation, the executive order says.

As CAIO, Mayer will also focus on the DOJ’s technology capacity-building efforts, including advice on recruiting technical employees, according to the DOJ.