LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — As artificial intelligence continues to evolve and find new uses in all kinds of industries, business leaders here in Kentucky held a summit to learn what the future might hold. There were lawmakers and business owners at this summit here in Lexington, learning about people in the industry who are implementing AI, how they see it shaping work, and what regulation might come.
The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Deloitte hosted the summit Monday morning.
"Just because you can, should you? We're seeing government leaders really be thoughtful of technology is shiny and cool, but is it the right technology for the right business case?" said Jamia McDonald, lead practice for state, local, and higher education clients at Deloitte.
Business leaders from across Kentucky listened to panel speakers from the AI world. They discussed how it can make work more efficient.
"What if we gave every nurse superpowers? What if the first set of interactions went with an AI system that didn't suck? And you had a chatbot that could answer the first layer of questions?" said Ben Reno-Weber, deputy director of the Health Equity Innovation Hub at the University of Louisville.
They discussed whether it would put jobs at risk or allow workers to focus on other things.
"The idea that I've seen is that for most workers, this is going to be a shift in time spent toward the things that people actually got into those fields for," said Dr. Trey Conatser from the Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching at the University of Kentucky.
They also discussed what regulations could be coming.
"We know that AI is driving innovation. We want to be on that forefront of innovative businesses here in Kentucky, but we also want to make sure that businesses and taxpayers alike are being protected. Where does that innovation and that regulation meet?" said Ashli Watts, president and CEO of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.
Representatives Josh Bray and Josh Branscum were part of a panel discussion on what policy could come here in Kentucky.
"I think everybody's kind of sitting back and waiting to see what happens at the federal level, because it makes a lot more sense for these large-scale guardrails to be put on there, but so far we've seen inaction, and so you're starting to see states pick up this issue and study it across the country," said Rep. Bray.
Bray and Branscum filed a resolution to create an AI task force to study how AI could help streamline government and also how the state could protect Kentuckians from the negative impacts of the technology.
"I think we have to be forward-thinking, but I also think we have to be very methodical in what we do," said Rep. Branscum.
That AI task force resolution passed the House unanimously and is awaiting a vote in the Senate. If it passes, the task force would submit its findings and recommendations to the Legislative Research Commission by the end of the year.
