On July 23, the Trump administration released its AI Action Plan, identifying over 90 federal policy actions to be taken in the coming months with respect to AI innovation in the U.S. The AI Action Plan stems from President Trump’s executive order on Removing Barriers to American Leadership in AI, which directed the assistant to the president for science and technology, the special advisor for AI and crypto, and the assistant to the president for national security affairs to promulgate such a plan.
The AI Action Plan uses three pillars to categorize the actions the Trump administration intends to take in the coming weeks and months: Accelerate AI Innovation, Build American AI Infrastructure, and Lead in International AI Diplomacy and Security.
Notably, the AI Action Plan aims to “empower American workers in the age of AI.” To achieve this goal, the plan directs the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Education, and other federal agencies to “prioritize AI skill development as a core objective of relevant education and workforce funding streams,” including through the “integration of AI skill development into relevant programs, including career and technical education (CTE), workforce training, apprenticeships, and other federally supported skills initiatives.” It also directs DOL to “establish the AI Workforce Research Hub … to lead a sustained Federal effort to evaluate the impact of AI on the labor market and the experience of the American worker” and to “leverage available discretionary funding … to fund rapid retraining for individuals impacted by AI-related job displacement.” Finally, it directs DOL and the Department of Commerce to “pilot new approaches to workforce challenges created by AI, which may include areas such as rapid retraining needs driven by worker displacement and shifting skill requirements for entry-level roles.”
The plan also includes actions to be taken by relevant federal agencies to train the workforce for AI infrastructure and to evaluate existing federal regulations on AI to ensure they do not hinder AI innovation. CUPA-HR joined ACE and other higher education organizations on comments in response to a previous Request for Information issued by the Trump administration on the development of the AI Action Plan. The CUPA-HR government relations team will continue to analyze the AI Action Plan and keep members apprised of significant actions taken by federal agencies with respect to AI and the workforce.