WASHINGTON (Washington Insider Magazine) – According to a federal watchdog report, the Pentagon did not sufficiently document work on its main artificial intelligence initiative, raising the danger of future lapses.
For Project Maven, which intended to expedite the incorporation of big data and machine learning, the Department of Defense inspector general examined if the government monitored connections in line with federal laws and regulations. It is commonly cited as the leading example for the Department of Defense’s use of AI.
To boost AI development, the Army Contracting Command and the Army Research Laboratory teamed up with the Pentagon’s Algorithmic Warfare Cross-Functional Team to award four agreements and a cooperative agreement for Project Maven. Three of the contracts went to ECS Federal, with the fourth going to Morse Corporation and a collaboration agreement going to Carnegie Mellon University. From September 2018 and February 2020, these contracts were granted to address a problem set linked to Project Maven’s goals.
All government organizations involved successfully monitored and managed Project Maven’s cooperative agreement and four contracts, according to the inspector general, by using reporting, metrics, processes, and measures to ensure businesses met predetermined deadlines set by the cross-functional team.
The cross-functional team, on the other hand, did not record its technique to formalize such initiatives, which is something the inspector general believes could increase the risk of gaps in contract monitoring and management as the program grows and staff changes. Furthermore, the project’s long-term viability and expansion could be hampered by a lack of documentation, especially as the Department of Defense attempts to extend its Machine learning efforts in strategies to succeed with sophisticated nation-states. If lessons learned aren’t documented, future attempts may be harmed, according to the redacted study.
Project Maven has already had a high-profile issue when Google pulled out of the program due to opposition from workers who did not like being connected with military technology. As DoD sought to lure technology companies in Silicon Valley to allow it to use the best and latest technologies, the issue grew more serious.
According to an article published in Defense News The IG’s office stated that it discussed ideas with the cross-functional team during the program’s evaluation. The cross-functional team offered evidence of activities taken to address suggestions in the report, including a description of roles and duties, standard operating procedure, and a Maven acquisition guide, following a conversation in October 2021.
In addition, the assistant secretary of defense for acquisition agreed that the cross-functional team’s emerging technology process should be reviewed.