Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios shed mild on the Trump administration’s synthetic intelligence coverage plans in a Wednesday House listening to, highlighting the function federal companies will play in executing these efforts regardless of mass worker terminations which have taken place over the previous 12 months.
But a number of Democrats on the House Science, Space and Technology’s Research and Technology panel questioned the present want for a technology-centric authorities workforce to advance the tenets of the administration’s AI Action Plan towards the backdrop of 2025 firing sprees spearheaded by the Department of Government Efficiency and the brand new hiring initiatives outlined by the U.S. Tech Force.
“We all agree here that, you know, technology and innovation is critical, and government plays a role in that,” Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va. stated. “How do you reconcile trying to recruit for this U.S. Tech Force with the firings of technologists who I think are right now very nervous about working in government?”
Kratsios agreed that bringing tech expertise to authorities is critically necessary, including that he considers the U.S. Tech Force hirings and the 2025 firings to be “separate issues.”
“I think what’s unique about the tech force initiative and what OPM is driving with that is the buy-in from the private sector,” he stated. “I think it’s unique to that program, something we haven’t seen in previous programs.”
A key characteristic of the U.S. Tech Force is partnering with main personal sector corporations — reminiscent of Oracle, Meta and Palantir — to functionally lend staff for restricted phrases inside the federal authorities whereas guaranteeing their personal sector jobs will stay once they return.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology stands to play a significant function within the administration’s tech coverage agenda, together with the AI Action Plan. These embrace creating and promulgating nationwide requirements for AI methods, investing in automated cloud-enabled labs for scientific analysis and leveraging the Center for AI Standards and Innovation to conduct safety analyses on main frontier fashions.
Kratsios stated that information collected by NIST, the National Science Foundation and different scientific companies will additionally assist advance the administration’s new Genesis Mission inside the subsequent two to a few years.
“I think there’s a very important role for NIST and [the Center for AI Standards and Innovation] to play in promulgating advanced metrology on model evaluation, and that is something that can be used across all industries when they want to deploy these models,” Kratsios stated.
Other lawmakers raised issues in regards to the broader funding standing for NIST and different scientific companies, underscoring the significance of regular federal monetary assist to scientific companies as a method to assist the administration attain its AI dominance aim.
“You can’t talk about the future of manufacturing without talking about the National Institute of Standards and Technology,” Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., stated, noting that spurring home semiconductor manufacturing is a crucial part of the Trump administration’s AI Action Plan.
Stevens cited a $325 million reduce to NIST’s funds proposed for fiscal 12 months 2026, ensuing within the lack of roughly 500 jobs.
“The cuts hinder NIST AI-related efforts,” Stevens stated. “They’re going to weaken cyber security and privacy standards … and limit advanced manufacturing, physical infrastructure and resilience innovation.”
Rep. George Whitesides, D-Calif., echoed these issues.
“I think what’s happened to American science is reprehensible, and the cuts that have been proposed –– and that I fear are about to be proposed again in a second presidential budget –– are attacking one of the core pillars of American strength,” Whitesides stated. “I think it is crucial that all of us who believe in the importance of science and innovation and technology speak up against the attacks that we have seen in the past year, both against funding, but more importantly, against the dedicated Americans who both in public service and funded by public funds are doing the work to make our world better.
Kratsios defended the budget, saying the Trump administration’s FY26 proposal has always prioritized AI.
“The key thing that I always try to remind people is: even in our attempt to try to right-size the budget, the one area where we have kept a consistent amount of proposed budget funding has been AI,” Kratsios stated. “We believe that this is a critical research priority for the administration, and something that we continue to fund.”
Some Democrats voiced assist for the form of the AI Action Plan and the ability it provides NIST.
“We were pleased that the President’s Executive Order continued to support the NIST efforts and the [Center for AI Standards and Innovation],” Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., stated.
Republicans on the committee largely praised the trail set forth within the AI motion plan, noting its alignment with previous congressional efforts.
“I am glad to see that the Administration’s AI Action Plan includes many of the same tenets as [Congress’] AI Task Force Report, including support for the continuation of NAIRR and for tasking the Center for AI Standards and Innovation with the critical work of developing standards and evaluating frontier AI models,” Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., stated in his opening assertion. “It is clear that Congress must step up to the plate and work with the executive branch in developing a competitive vision for American leadership in artificial intelligence.”