According to several reports, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is considering terminating up to 500 employees, potentially endangering a newly established AI safety organization. Axios recently indicated that layoffs at the US AI Safety Institute (AISI) and Chips for America, both integrated within NIST, would substantially impact these groups, particularly affecting probationary employees who are typically in their initial years of service. Furthermore, Bloomberg reported that some employees had already received verbal notification of the impending layoffs.
Prior to these layoff reports, the future of AISI was already uncertain. Established last year with the goal of assessing risks and developing standards for AI development, the institute was formed as part of an executive order on AI safety issued by then-President Joe Biden. However, this order was revoked by President Donald Trump on his first day back in office. In addition, the director of AISI resigned earlier in February.
Fortune engaged with several AI safety and policy organizations, all of whom criticized the proposed layoffs. Jason Green-Lowe, the executive director of the Center for AI Policy, noted that if these reductions were to proceed, the government’s ability to investigate and address critical AI safety issues would be significantly compromised, especially at a time when such expertise is increasingly crucial.
