US Justice Department hires first AI officer as new tech challenges law

The U.S. Justice Department has appointed its first official dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI) as the department deals with the potential impact of AI on federal law enforcement and the criminal justice system. Jonathan Mayer, a professor at Princeton University who studies technology and law, has been appointed as the chief science and technology adviser and chief AI officer, the department announced.

“The Justice Department must keep pace with rapidly evolving scientific and technological developments in order to fulfill our mission to uphold the rule of law, keep our country safe and protect civil rights,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

Mayer will give advice to Garland and the department’s leaders on topics related to new technologies, including how to sensibly incorporate AI into the department’s investigations and criminal prosecutions. U.S. officials have been trying to figure out how to reduce the risks of a technology that’s growing fast and not well-regulated, while also trying to make the most of its potential benefits.

The Justice Department has already used AI to track where opioids and other illegal drugs come from, look into tips sent to the FBI, and sort out evidence gathered in its investigation of the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a speech in Britain last week.

Monaco said the tech could help the U.S. find and stop terror plots and unfriendly actions from U.S. enemies. But she also said the department is worried it could make existing biases worse, mess with elections, and give cyber criminals new chances.

“Every new technology is a double-edged sword, but AI may be the sharpest blade yet,” Monaco said during the speech at Oxford University.

Mayer will head up a new group of law enforcement and civil rights experts who will give advice to Garland and others at the Justice Department about the ethics and effectiveness of AI systems. He’ll also try to get more tech experts to join the department.

Mayer was the tech adviser to now-Vice President Kamala Harris when she was a U.S. senator and also worked for the Federal Communications Commission.