The U.S.Department of State is embracing the potential of generative artificial intelligence (AI) by initiating market research to explore its use in contract writing. In a request for information (RFI) released, the State Department announced that several of its bureaus are seeking industry feedback on leveraging generative AI and machine learning capabilities to streamline basic contract writing processes.
Additionally, the State Department aims to gain insights into the current obstacles and security considerations associated with introducing generative and natural language processing AI into its network through the RFI process. Generative AI has gained significant popularity with the emergence of products like ChatGPT, which can generate new content, including text and images, based on their training with large language models.
The State Department’s bureaus of Information Resource Management, Consular Affairs, and International Narcotics and Law Enforcement are leading the effort. The RFI states that the department’s business operations heavily rely on outdated technology and manual-intensive processes, resulting in untapped data resources, wasted labour hours, and inefficiencies. Integrating AI technology into the existing and recurring processes aims to reduce inefficiencies stemming from labour-intensive tasks.
The department believes that this approach would reduce costs, manual labour and the likelihood of errors, enhance decision-making, and improve contract outcomes. However, certain constraining factors could impede the implementation of generative AI, such as the lack of approval for departmental use and the absence of a published AI policy.
The State Department’s exploration of generative AI for contract writing reflects its commitment to harnessing emerging technologies to enhance operational efficiency and decision-making.
