US government enters the race for AI talent

US government agencies have ramped up their efforts to hire AI talent, filling newly created chief AI officer positions and aggressively seeking out AI-related skills.

The Justice Department hired its first chief AI officer in February. That addition came on the heels of other recent CAIO appointments at the Education Department, the General Services Administration, and the Housing and Urban Development Department.

Officials at federal departments, like their counterparts in the private sector, say the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence and, more specifically, generative AI has created a sense of urgency to hire — or be left behind.

“With the emergence of these tools over the last five years and then the most recent explosion onto the public consciousness last year, there is broad acknowledgment that the government needs to bring in some of this in-demand skill set,” says Kyleigh Russ, senior advisor to the deputy director of the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

That echoes the message President Biden delivered in his October 2023 executive order on “Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence,” which in part calls for the hiring spree.

“AI can help government deliver better results for the American people,” the order states, before mandating that the federal government “accelerate the rapid hiring of AI professionals” and “provide AI training for employees at all levels in relevant fields.”

In response to the executive order, the US government in early December launched its AI Talent Surge, with a corresponding website aimed at enticing applicants to bring their AI skills to government positions.

All in on AI

Although the hiring push is recent, federal efforts to lay the groundwork for bringing on AI talent dates back years.

For example, Russ points to the AI in Government Act of 2020, which directed OPM to establish fundamental aspects of the AI workforce, such as identifying key skills needed; establishing an occupational series to include positions primarily dedicated to AI; estimating the number of federal employees in AI-related positions at each agency; and preparing two-year and five-year forecasts of the number of employees in AI positions that each federal agency will need to employ.

Today OPM provides guidance to agencies on what AI and AI-enabling talent looks like, how to structure their tech and AI teams, and where and how they can find this talent, Russ says, noting, however, that each agency generally does its own recruiting and hiring.

As part of its support, OPM is “giving agencies a large degree of flexibility and latitude in bringing in AI talent quickly,” by, for example, granting Direct Hire Authority for many technical AI positions, Russ says.

OPM also supports agencies in adopting innovative hiring strategies such as pooled hiring and subject matter expert involvement in assessments, she adds. Furthermore, OPM this year will roll out guidance around skills-based hiring, pay flexibilities, and other programs designed to help bring in AI talent.

In addition to chief AI officers and AI experts, federal officials also seek to quickly hire workers with AI-enabling skills — such as data scientists.

“We’re looking for all kinds of talent in tech, especially in AI,” says Mukunda Penugonde, Technology Transformation Services (TTS) deputy director in the US General Services Administration (GSA). “But AI strategy and implementation can’t exist in a vacuum; we not only need the raw engineering and data talent but also people who can ensure AI work is successful, like technologists and those who work on product and project management, data, analytics, software development, infrastructure, policy, and procurement.”

TTS is hiring its own AI and AI-adjacent talent while supporting other federal agencies in their efforts to hire as well, Penugonde adds.

Public service: Dot-gov’s ‘unique value proposition’

Despite such efforts, OPM and other federal offices are encountering a highly competitive market for AI talent.

CompTIA, for example, lists AI as the most in-demand skill in the IT industry for 2024, and Foundry’s State of the CIO Survey ranks AI as the No. 1 most difficult skill set to find, according to IT leader respondents. Pay premiums for a range of AI skills rank at the top of the latest Foote Partners’ IT Skills Demand and Pay Trends Report as well, suggesting that those behind on hiring for AI talent will need to pay even more to catch up.

“Given the emerging nature of this skill set, there is definitely a shortage of talent in this space. This is one of the main reasons that we have granted additional hiring authorities,” Russ says.

Still, federal officers are optimistic about the government’s ability to bring on talent.

Russ says the government’s “unique value proposition” whose mission-driven work has an “impact both on an immediate level and also on a more systemic level” is a draw for many. So are the competitive benefits and job security that come with federal positions.

Olivia Zhu, a senior policy advisor with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, says the government’s recruitment efforts are yielding strong results.

“Since October, we’ve seen unprecedented levels of interest in joining the federal government to work on AI. We’re excited about all those who will be embarking on a journey of public service and helping support our ambitious mission to harness the benefits and mitigate the risks of AI,” she says in an emailed statement.

Penugonde says the White House AI Executive Order “has sparked interest nationwide in government AI roles.” For example, a recent government-wide career fair yielded 3,000-plus applicants for product manager, designer, and engineer roles at GSA, as well as more than 800 applications for individual technologist roles, he says.

“We’re finding that more and more candidates are drawn to public service — the purpose, the mission of the agency, and the opportunity to work on meaningful projects with public impact,” Penugonde says.

Federal agencies are also working to upskill existing staffers on AI skills. For example, TTS is home to the government’s AI Center of Excellence and its AI Community of Practice, where federal employees can build and support AI talent and learning.

States follow suit

The federal government’s focus on adding AI skills appears to be delivering returns: The US Treasury Department on Feb. 28 announced that its use of AI for enhanced fraud detection recovered more than $375 million since the technology’s implementation.

And state governments are following suit, says Amy Glasscock, program director for innovation and emerging issues at the National Association of State CIOs (NASCIO).

“Much of the state legislation and executive orders we are seeing right now involve the directive to create an AI task force,” Glasscock explains, adding that states may also task agencies with appointing chief AI officers in the future.

Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee on Feb. 29 issued an executive order mandating that the state create of a AI Center of Excellence, implement AI-related training, and identify opportunities to use AI to improve services.

But states will likely have a harder time hiring AI talent than the federal government, Glasscock says.

“Over the last few years state CIOs have cited lack of necessary staff skills as a barrier to AI adoption, so while they may have a need to hire AI talent, state governments are really facing a lot of workforce challenges in general,” she explains, noting that “it’s tough for governments to compete with the salaries of the private sector.”

Reskilling efforts and private-sector partnerships may be states’ initial approaches to addressing these challenges, she says.

Bridge to the future

Such assessments aren’t deterring State of Alaska CIO Bill Smith.

“Our governor has encouraged use of AI to improve services and also to compensate for the vacancies we have in state government, so, in other words, using AI to help our current workforce do more with less,” Smith says.

Smith acknowledges that he will be challenged to compete for AI experts, as demand is sky-high. “Very highly skilled AI thought leaders aren’t available for state employment. There aren’t enough of them out there for the big vendors let alone for state government,” he says.

To compensate for that reality, Smith plans to boost his state government’s AI chops by instructing his IT team to maximize use of intelligence tools increasingly baked into products and services in the state’s tech stack. The goal, he says, is “to focus on where we can use AI today to make a difference.”

He’s also leaning on providers to upskill his staffers, while looking for AI skills in new IT hires to further bolster the state’s reserves of AI talent.

Such strategies, Smith says, will allow him to ramp up the AI talent he needs to eventually create an AI center of excellence — a goal he believes will be a reality when, in the upcoming years, the availability of AI talent better matches the demand for it.