Advancing American AI through National Public-Private Partnerships for AI Research
Summary
The Biden-Harris Administration should launch a national initiative to bring together academic and industry researchers and practitioners in a public-private partnership (PPP) to advance, at scale, the research foundations of artificial intelligence (AI) and its application in areas of economic advantage and national need. The National Public-Private Partnership in AI (NPPP-AI) Initiative would initially create 10 coordinated national AI R&D Institutes, each with 10-year lifetimes and jointly funded by industry partners and the U.S. government through its research agencies at $10M/year each (10x10x10).
NPPP-AI would accelerate future breakthroughs in AI foundations, enable a virtuous cycle between foundational and use-inspired research that would rapidly transition into practice innovations that contribute to U.S. economic and national security, as well as grow education and workforce capacity by linking university faculty and students with industry professionals, settings, and jobs.
AI’s high-stakes outputs directly shape American economic, industrial, and technological outcomes. They must not be accepted entirely on the basis of institutional faith rather than verifiable evidence.
The clearinghouse will also neutrally mediate the assignment of auditors to audits—strengthening independence, trust, and ethical governance across the AI ecosystem.
Soft law was never meant to be a permanent solution. Treating it as one, and letting the sandcastle stand in for the skyscraper indefinitely, is how we end up with a decade of voluntary commitments and no enforceable accountability to show for it.
Jobseekers, employees at smaller organizations, and local public workers need more than a weekend crash course in AI. They need practice choosing useful tasks, protecting data, testing outputs, and explaining where human judgment remains necessary.