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Dr. Lynne Parker

Dr. Lynne Parker

Director of the AI Tennessee Initiative at the University of Tennessee; Knoxville (UTK)

Former Director of the National Artificial Intelligence Office, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

Lynne E. Parker, a native Knoxvillian, is Associate Vice Chancellor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), and Director of the AI Tennessee Initiative, which is positioning the University and the state of Tennessee as a national and global leader in the data-intensive knowledge economy. Prior to this role, she led national artificial intelligence (AI) policy efforts for four years (2018-2022) in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, serving as Deputy Chief Technology Officer of the United States, Founding Director of the National AI Initiative Office, and Assistant Director for AI. She also served as co-chair of the Congressionally-directed National AI Research Resource Task Force, which is working to democratize access to the computational and data infrastructure needed for AI research. She served for two years (2015-2016) at the National Science Foundation as Division Director for Information and Intelligent Systems. In these roles across three Administrations, she led the development of numerous landmark national AI policies bolstering research, governance, education and workforce training, international engagement, and the Federal use of AI.

Dr. Parker joined the UTK faculty in 2002 and is an expert on distributed and intelligent robot systems, human-robot interaction, and AI, having published extensively in these and related areas. She previously worked for several years as a Distinguished Research and Development Staff Member and Group Leader at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, researching multi-robot and human-robot systems. Dr. Parker has served on many government advisory boards, including the National Academies' Intelligence Science and Technology Experts Group (ISTEG), National Research Council's (NRC) committee on persistent surveillance for the counter-IED mission, NRC Panel for Review of the Engineering Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), NRC Panel on Mechanical Science and Engineering at the Army Research Laboratory (ARL), NRC Advisory Panel on Information Science at ARL, NRC Advisory Panel on Air and Ground Vehicle Technology at ARL, and NRC Advisory Panel on Armor and Armaments at ARL. Dr. Parker was also a member of the 2004-2005 class of the Defense Science Study Group (DSSG).

Recent Events and Presentations

February 23, 2023

Where Should US AI Policy Be Headed Next?

Watch ITIF's Center for Data Innovation's panel discussion on the impact and efficacy of AI policy to date. Experts will debate on how policymakers can best nurture the capabilities and activities of the U.S. AI ecosystem moving forward.

May 30, 2019

What’s Next in Standards Setting for AI?

Artificial Intelligence is the proverbial Wild West, at least that's what concerns many skeptics. Please join ITIF's Center for Data Innovation in partnership with NIST for a conversation about the state of play in developing standards and oversight of AI systems, the need for proper governance of AI in key industries like health care and transportation, and the role that policymakers can play in advancing these efforts.

December 4, 2018

Why It’s Time for the United States to Develop a National AI Strategy

While many nations have developed national strategies to support the development and adoption of AI, the United States has not. Join ITIF's Center for Data Innovation for the release of a new report laying out a detailed national AI strategy and a panel discussion about the ways in which policymakers can make the United States more competitive in the global AI race.

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