NASA Appoints Its First Chief Artificial Intelligence (AI) Officer

David Salvagnini was appointed as NASA’s new top artificial intelligence (AI) officer by Administrator Bill Nelson on Monday, with immediate effect. As chief data officer, Salvagnini’s present position has expanded into this one.

NASA uses a broad range of AI technologies to advance humankind, including designing systems that can sustain spacecraft and planes independently, analyzing data to identify trends and patterns, and assisting missions and research projects throughout the organization. 

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“NASA has been using artificial intelligence safely for decades, and as this technology advances, it can quicken the rate of scientific discovery,” Nelson stated in the Press Release. We must continue to lead the way in innovation and appropriate usage. David will take charge of NASA’s initiatives in this new capacity to direct our organization’s ethical application of AI on Earth and in space for the good of all people.  

The Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, signed by President Biden, is complied with by this appointment. Salvagnini is currently in charge of planning and coordinating NASA’s use of AI strategically. He supports the creation and risk management of platforms, tools, and training in his capacity as a champion for AI innovation. 

To keep NASA at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, Salvagnini will maintain NASA’s partnerships with other government agencies, academic institutions, business partners, and other specialists in his extended role.

Salvagnini worked in technological leadership in the intelligence agency for more than 20 years before joining NASA in June 2023. He was chief architect and director of the architecture and integration group at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence before joining NASA. 

In addition, Salvagnini held several positions overseeing operations, engineering, and research and development at the corporate level for IT, data, and artificial intelligence initiatives. After 21 years of service, David retired in May 2005 from the Air Force as an officer of computer systems and communications.

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NASA is still working on recommendations on how to best use emerging AI technology to further our missions and goals. Some examples of these include sorting through Earth science imagery to find areas of interest, using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to search for information on planets outside of our solar system, scheduling communications from the Perseverance Mars rover via the Deep Space Network, and more.

NASA’s Chief Scientist, Kate Calvin, acted as the organization’s accountable AI official before Salvagnini was appointed.

Visit NASA’s Artificial Intelligence website to find out more: https://www.nasa.gov/artificial-intelligence