Being Comfortable with Failure in Government AI Development

Artificial Intelligence
Written By Fareeha Khan

In the government arena, connecting new innovations, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities, into agency workflows has become a key priority. However, many government CIOs don’t have an AI budget through the rest of FY2024 to bring these efforts to life.

However, through the use of Technology Modernization Funds (TMF), and the development of AI maturity models which is a key priority for federal and defense agencies, AI will continue to emerge into the forefront of government IT.

These were some of the key themes of the recent 2024 ACT-IAC Emerging Technology and Innovation Conference, which focused on helping agencies to invest in cutting-edge innovations, while also ensuring that the technology being applied is in an ethical, responsible way.

Kavan Weerasinghe, Director of Delivery and Cybersecurity Practice at Makpar; Tariq Islam, Chief Technology Officer at Makpar; and Kaamil Khan, V.P., B.D. & Operations at Makpar, attended the event and came back with many learnings worthy of sharing. 

  • Generative AI for Operations: AI driven tools can enhance operations by automating processes and workflows. As highlighted in this recent Federal News Network article, the Department of Defense (DoD) is also developing an AI maturity model that will use a rubric to make it easier to understand where AI can integrate into the DoD's operations.

  • AI Funding: Since budgets are set years in advance, many government CIOs don’t have AI budgets through FY2024. However, several keynote speakers recommended that industry members tap into TMF funds, as well as demonstrate to CIOs how to utilize funds designated for other efforts towards AI.

  • NIST and AI: In addition to offering a testbed for AI development through grants, NIST also offers an AI specific Risk Management Framework (AI RMF), which is “intended for voluntary use and to improve the ability to incorporate trustworthiness considerations into the design, development, use, and evaluation of AI products, services, and systems.”

  • The Need to Get Comfortable with Failure: There’s a need to create a development climate where innovation teams can take a Plan-Do-Check-Act approach, which is a continuous loop of planning, doing, checking and acting , for AI development.  The foundation for this should be getting comfortable with failure. This means taking risks and learning from failures. AI requires experimentation at velocity which can be achieved by leadership espousing a data driven culture and innovation culture.

According to ACT-IAC, the overall emerging technology trends for 2024 and beyond are Digital Choreography, Continued Connectivity, Unparalleled AI/ML Use, Magnified Computational Power, Talent Gap, Trust -First Technology, and Space and Beyond. The foundation for these trends are the need for agencies to rethink everything from how data is collected and stored to how to invest in these solutions.

While it seems that there are hurdles to bringing AI to life in government, there are ways to overcome budget challenges, embrace NIST grants and take a no-fear-of-failure approach when it comes to AI development.   

Makpar offers the following AI informational resources to help agencies fully embrace AI for mission success:

If you would like to learn more about how Makpar can help your agency develop the most comprehensive AI solutions for enhancing mission success, please contact us here.   

Fareeha Khan
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