Artificial Intelligence

State Dept. seeks employee volunteers to test AI chatbot

The State Department is piloting an internal chatbot backed by artificial intelligence technology, and will leverage internal sensitive but unclassified data.

Policy

US targets 6 to 8 month timeframe for new nations to join spyware pact

Six new countries joined the agreement last week, and the State Department was working behind the scenes to initially get more signed on.

Cybersecurity

US accuses Chinese hackers of 14-year campaign targeting government officials

The coordinated charges include sanctions on Chinese government-affiliated hackers and an up to $10 million reward for information about the defendants.

People

State selects 4 new Science Envoys

Four U.S. scientists and researchers will work in the State Department’s Science Envoy Program.

Acquisition

State is taking an ‘important step’ for planned EHR, as key lawmaker moves to speed it up

State’s Bureau of Medical Services has been working for more than a decade to replace its current paper-based medical record system with an electronic solution to better meet the healthcare needs of its diplomatic corps.

Artificial Intelligence

US has shared AI security interests with ‘every country around the world,’ State official says

Seth Center, the State Department’s deputy envoy for critical and emerging technology, broke down the U.S. diplomatic approach to cultivating cohesive regulatory approaches. 

Cybersecurity

State Department to levy visa restrictions on spyware abusers

The move builds on several actions taken by the Biden administration in the past year to counter abusive commercial spyware practices.

Artificial Intelligence

USAID wants help in crafting a playbook for global AI uses

The federal government’s latest artificial intelligence guidance is looking to take recommendations from earlier risk management documents.

Cybersecurity

State's cyber bureau has ‘raised the U.S. profile on cyber globally,’ watchdog says

The Government Accountability Office said the creation of the Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy in 2022 has “helped to better position State to achieve its cyber diplomacy goals.”

Modernization

State Department restores passport processing to pre-pandemic levels

A hiring surge and mandatory overtime has brought passport processing down to its lowest level in years.

Artificial Intelligence

AI can help predict nuclear threats, but also develop others faster, State report warns

A report from a State Department advisory board on AI’s impact on arms control, nonproliferation and verification warned that the tech “is likely to lower barriers to biological and chemical weapons development.”

Artificial Intelligence

State plans to lead by example in tech diplomacy politics

Between following a new executive order and modernizing agency operations, the State Department is building its policy on artificial intelligence through promoting U.S. innovation.

Cybersecurity

State’s cyber overhaul bets big on zero trust to tackle emerging threats

The State Department started at the “bottom of the barrel” when the White House’s 2021 cybersecurity executive order was released, according to the agency’s chief information security officer.

Digital Government

State dives deep into data

The State Department is increasingly capitalizing on advances in data analytics to inform diplomacy and funding efforts.

People

Eileen Donahoe tapped for State Dept. digital freedom envoy

The former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Human Rights Council will work within the State Department’s Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy.

Cybersecurity

The world is ‘reentering an era of strategic competition’ with cyber, official says

Cyberspace Ambassador Nathaniel Fick argued that the U.S. needs to be able to provide cybersecurity assistance to allies in a way that incorporates emerging technologies.

Artificial Intelligence

Emerging tech, misinformation dominate May transatlantic council talks

The Transatlantic Technology and Trade Council spent last week laying groundwork for unified action on new technologies worldwide.

Policy

US deploys tech diplomacy to cultivate leadership in emerging fields

The Biden administration’s latest foreign policy pillar prioritizes uniform standards on critical technologies within ally nations.