By: AIF Staff
Washington, DC – At a virtual event hosted jointly by the Urban Institute and the American Enterprise Institute, former House Speaker Paul Ryan and former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced the creation of Commission on Artificial Intelligence and the Future of the American Workforce, which they will jointly chair.
The Commission will be a year-long initiative that brings together leaders from industry, labor, academia, and government to develop an actionable policy framework for AI-driven employment disruption.
Watch the virtual announcement here and check out Speaker Ryan’s opening statement, as prepared for delivery, below.
Good morning, everyone. I want to thank my good friend, Secretary Gina Raimondo, for agreeing to chair this Commission with me.
Just this past weekend, elected officials from Donald Trump to Bernie Sanders to Jay Obernolte threw out various policy ideas on AI. Last week, we saw massive swings in tech stocks. Last month, Anthropic’s Mythos model made waves in the national security space.
Make no mistake: The AI revolution is here and Washington, DC needs to quickly wrap its heads around the specific policy challenges that it is going to present for American workers and job creators.
America will be better-served if we take an evidence-based approach to developing AI policy and that’s why this Commission will bring in the perspectives of academics, technologists, leaders from labor and business, and thought-leaders from across the political spectrum. Having the support of AEI and the Urban Institute, two gold-standard research organizations, will ensure this is a substantive endeavor focused on real solutions, as opposed to partisan soundbites.
My view is simple: We stand at a critical crossroads where technological innovation meets the dignity of human work. Artificial intelligence is actively rewriting the rules of our economy.
Over a century ago, Pope Leo XIII responded to the Industrial Revolution by writing Rerum Novarum, reminding the world that capital and labor are fundamentally interdependent. Recently, Pope Leo XIV built upon that very foundation with Magnifica Humanitas, noting that while technology can be an ally, it requires thoughtful parameters and policy responses so that it remains a force for good.
The desire and ability to create Artificial Intelligence shows our immense capabilities as humans, but we must never allow technology to replace or overtake the value of the individual worker.
Throughout my time in Congress, my focus was always on expanding upward mobility and economic opportunity using an evidence-based, data-driven approach.
I watched firsthand as my hometown of Janesville, Wisconsin faced severe economic restructuring when the GM plant closed. I know what happens to families when the economic ground shifts beneath their feet.
We cannot afford to let the AI transition happen by accident; we must shape it with intention and with an eye towards helping those whose careers and lives will be most acutely impacted.
That is why we are launching the Commission on AI and the Future of the American Workforce. This commission is structured to deliver clear, practical utility to two specific groups: policymakers and the employer-employee ecosystem.
For my former colleagues in Congress and policymakers, this Commission is designed to provide specific solutions and ideas to particular aspects of challenges that AI will impose on the workforce.
I spent 25 years as a staffer and Member of Congress, so I know how difficult it is to govern at the speed of technological change.
This initiative will not produce an academic report to sit on a shelf. Instead, it will provide a practical roadmap of actionable options to consider as lawmakers attempt to assist workers and incentivize growth.
For employers and their employees, this Commission aims to address the immediate realities of the free market.
In my work at Teneo and Solamere Capital, I see leaders every day who are actively grappling with the AI challenge. They want to innovate, but they also want to protect their workforce. This Commission will bridge that gap.
We will help employers understand how to integrate AI to augment human capability rather than simply automate it away. We will advance ideas that clear pathways for employees to upskill into the high-demand, high-paying jobs of tomorrow.
We can achieve both technological leadership and human flourishing. By bringing together the best minds from the public and private sectors, we will ensure that the future of AI is a future built by, and for, the American worker.