Hi-Tech Diversity Is a Societal Goal, Not an Industry Scandal
“Defending Digital” Series, No. 8: Every industry and every profession has faced the challenge of developing a workforce that looks more like America itself. A steady flow of talent from leading universities remains the key to overcoming long-standing barriers and stereotypes.
US AI Policy Report Card
The 117th Congress was the most AI-focused congressional session in history with 130 AI bills proposed, so it is a good moment to take stock of U.S. AI policy accomplishments to date and identify areas where there is room for continued progress.
How Japan Squandered Its Biopharmaceutical Competitiveness: A Cautionary Tale
Stringent drug price controls have significantly hampered the competitive and innovative capacity of Japan’s biopharmaceutical industry in recent decades, serving as a warning for U.S. policymakers considering introducing Medicare Part D drug price controls in 2022.
The Hamilton Index: Assessing National Performance in the Competition for Advanced Industries
Compared to major competitors, U.S. output in key advanced industries is weak and declining. Congress and the administration should launch an economic “moon shot” initiative committing to increase the concentration of these industries in the U.S. economy by at least 20 percentage points relative to the global average within a decade.
The North American Subnational Innovation Competitiveness Index
The North American innovation ecosystem is increasingly diverse. In collaboration with Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Fundación IDEA, and the Bay Area Economic Council Institute, ITIF compiled this index to identify economic differences among states and provinces and highlight regions needing more federal attention, identify cross-national innovation performance, and track the continent’s overall competitiveness in the innovation-driven global economy.
No One Talks About Too Much Automation Anymore
“Defending Digital” Series, No. 7: Remember all those breathless warnings that artificial intelligence would soon eliminate a wide range of “routine” jobs? So far, pretty much the opposite has occurred. Given today’s widespread worker shortages, corrosive inflation, and vast societal challenges, America clearly needs all the automation it can get.
The Revised (But Uncorrected) Version of the Klobuchar Bill
The revised version of the Klobuchar bill (S.2992), aimed at prohibiting a few large tech companies from self-preferencing their services and forcing them to grant their rivals access to vital proprietary assets, fails to correct the critical deficiencies of the bill’s original version. This report provides a legal analysis of the new, yet uncorrected, pitfalls of the Klobuchar bill.
The Power of Big Tech Peaked During the Pandemic; Disruptive Forces Are on the Rise
“Defending Digital Series,” No. 6: Big Tech was essential in getting America through the Covid19 pandemic, but during the 2020s and ‘30s, technological, competitive, and societal shifts can be expected to rein in the influence of today’s digital leaders, as consumer markets mature, and as other national and international priorities take center stage.
AI Bias Is Correctable. Human Bias? Not So Much
“Defending Digital” Series, No. 5: Individual decisions are shaped by our values, beliefs, experiences, inclinations, prejudices, and blind spots. These “biases” can easily leak into information system design. But overall and over time, modern technology will prove a force for more fair and objective societal actions.
