Thousands of people are gathering at the Washington Convention Center in Downtown D.C. this week for the second annual AI+ Expo. Companies, colleges, the military and other government agencies have all set up shop.
State governments have shown up too, hoping to lure tech firms into relocating.
The event is being hosted by the Special Competitive Studies Project, a nonprofit that’s working to strengthen artificial intelligence in the U.S., noting that it’s a more centralized project in other adversarial countries.
“AI is a revolutionary technology that’s impacting all of us,” said Ryan Carpenter, a special adviser with the nonprofit.
His stage, focused on the career aspects of AI, is right at the front of the giant hall hosting the event.
“This is a way to demystify what AI is and what it means to incorporate AI into what you do,” he said. “With any technological revolution, you’re going to have a change in jobs. Sixty percent of the jobs that are around today, weren’t around 80 years ago. So we’re just trying to make sure people know what are the skills they need to engage.”
Among those who spoke on his stage was Juan Pablo Segura, the commerce secretary in Virginia.
“We can’t be afraid of AI,” Segura said. “We need to actually embrace it and make sure that it’s used to help folks every day.”
He said Virginia is embracing it, and its residents should be ready to seize the opportunity.
“We have 31,000 AI related job openings in Virginia right now,” Segura said. “Billions of dollars are being invested in AI. Now the question is, how do you connect those jobs with the workforce that is ready to go and hit the ground running?”
That’s why schools, such as George Mason University and the University of Virginia, were also set up inside, highlighting the graduate programs available to those who have an interest. Segura noted that a company recently announced it was bringing 250 jobs to Virginia, each of them paying about $250,000 to those who will be hired.
“That’s an incredible job,” he said. “That can really be a huge opportunity for a Virginia family. So we want more of those opportunities.”
Beyond job opportunities, hundreds of speakers spoke about the present and future of AI from different angles. There were drone races and demonstrations, including participants from the British military and robots walking around the floor.
“Our mission is to educate the public about what’s out there,” Carpenter said. “And this expo floor, what better way to showcase that, then to walk by and see it in practice, and having the educators here, and having the businesses here?”
Registration for the expo is free and the event continues through Wednesday.
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