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FAS: NIST Foundation
webRelevant for those tracking U.S. AI governance infrastructure; FAS is a prominent science policy organization and this proposal relates to NIST's AI Safety Institute, a key federal body for AI evaluation standards.
Metadata
Importance: 42/100organizational reportanalysis
Summary
The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) advocates for establishing a NIST Foundation to support the National Institute of Standards and Technology's work on AI safety standards and evaluation frameworks. This proposal argues that a philanthropic foundation structure would enable NIST to better develop technical AI safety standards, attract talent, and coordinate with private sector stakeholders. It represents a policy mechanism for strengthening the U.S. government's capacity to set and enforce AI safety benchmarks.
Key Points
- •Proposes creating a nonprofit NIST Foundation to supplement federal funding and expand NIST's capacity for AI safety standards work
- •Argues NIST's AI Safety Institute needs additional resources and flexibility beyond typical government funding constraints
- •A foundation model would allow NIST to attract private sector expertise and philanthropic support for AI evaluation efforts
- •Positions NIST as a key institution for developing technically credible AI safety benchmarks and evaluation frameworks
- •Draws on precedents like the NSF Foundation to justify the governance and funding model
Cited by 1 page
| Page | Type | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| NIST and AI Safety | Organization | 63.0 |
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A NIST Foundation to Support the Agency’s AI Mandate
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) faces several obstacles to advancing its mission on artificial intelligence (AI) at a time when the field is rapidly advancing and consequences for falling short are wide-reaching. To enable NIST to quickly and effectively respond, Congress should authorize the establishment of a NIST Foundation to unlock additional resources, expertise, flexible funding mechanisms, and innovation, while ensuring the foundation is stood up with strong ethics and oversight mechanisms.
Challenge
The rapid advancement of AI presents unprecedented opportunities and complex challenges as it is increasingly integrated into the way that we work and live. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency within the Department of Commerce, plays an important role in advancing AI-related research, measurement, evaluation, and technical standard setting. NIST has recently been given responsibilities under President Biden’s October 30, 2023, Executive Order (EO) on Safe, Security, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence. To support the implementation of the EO, NIST launched an AI Safety Institute (AISI), created an AI Safety Institute Consortium (AISIC), and released a strategic vision for AISI focused on safe and responsible AI innovation, among other actions .
While work is underway to implement Biden’s AI EO and deliver on NIST’s broader AI mandate, NIST faces persistent obstacles in its ability to quickly and effectively respond. For example, recent legislation like the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 has set discretionary spending limits for FY26 through FY29, which means less funding is available to support NIST’s programs. Even before this, NIST’s funding has remained at a fractional level (around $1–1.3 billion each year) of the industries it is supposed to set standards for. Since FY22, NIST has received lower appropriations than it has requested.
In addition, NIST is struggling to attract the specialized science and technology (S&T) talent that it needs due to competition for technical talent, a lack of competitive pay compared to the private sector, a gender-imbalanced culture, and issues with transferring institutional knowledge when individuals transition out of the agency, according to a February 2023 Government Accountability Office report. Alongside this, NIST has limitations on how it can work with the private sector and is subject to procurement processes that can be a barrier to innovation, an issue the agency has struggled with in years past, according to a September 2005 Inspector General report .
The consequences of NIST not fulfilling its mandate on AI due to these challenges and limitations are wide-reaching: a lack of uniform AI standards across platforms and countries; reduced AI trust and security; limitati
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