Laurie Locascio
NIST Director and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology
Laurie Ellen Locascio was born in November 1961 in Cumberland, Maryland. She earned an undergraduate degree from James Madison University, a master of science from the University of Utah, and a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She served as an academic chemical and bioengineering research assistant.
Locascio served as a research biomedical engineer with a division of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. She served as acting associate director for laboratory programs and then became vice president for research at the University of Maryland.
President Joe Biden nominated Locascio as Under Secretary for Commerce for Standards and Technology in July 2021. She was confirmed by the Senate and sworn into office in April 2022.
In the News…
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced the Departments of Commerce and State co-hosted a two-day AI summit in San Francisco this week. The International Network of AI Safety Institutes’ inaugural convening sought to advance global AI safety and cooperation.
Representatives from Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Japan, Kenya, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, and the United Kingdom joined U.S. officials in discussions around identifying and mitigating the risks of artificial intelligence. Leading AI developers, academics, civil society leaders, and scientists also collaborated with government tech experts.
The NIST described the convening as “a technical working meeting that will address three high-priority topics that stand to urgently benefit from international coordination, specifically: (1) managing risks from synthetic content, (2) testing foundation models, and (3) conducting risk assessments for advanced AI systems.“
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Under Secretary Locascio today? You can let her know at:
The Honorable Laurie Locascio, Under Secretary
Department of Commerce
National Institute of Standards and Technology
100 Bureau Drive
Gaithersburg, MD 20899
