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We’re excited to introduce a refreshed format with new additions and enhancements.
Each week, we’ll continue to bring you the latest tech policy news, including legislation moving through Congress, new federal policies and regulations, and key developments across the tech industry.
We’re also expanding our content with new features that provide additional insights and perspectives. These additions include spotlights on VFI members, reader polls and quizzes, tech history and fun facts, notable innovations, action alerts, and more. Please share the Executive Briefing with colleagues and invite them to subscribe using this link. We also welcome your feedback on the refreshed format. Please contact us at outreach@voicesforinnovationaction.org with any comments or suggestions.
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A notice filed on Monday by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will ban any products produced by DeepSeek AI, the Beijing-based AI company, and third-party services using DeepSeek AI models from any civilian agency IT systems, citing security risks. As reported by Politico, DeepSeek had previously been banned from some government and military systems.
The U.S. Commerce Department announced $389 million in research and development funding investments through the CHIPS and Science Act. The money will support semiconductor research at four companies, Helion, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Vertical Semiconductor, and Sibelco, with the Commerce Department receiving non-voting shares in the companies in return. (Seeking Alpha)
New York City transit agencies released a joint report on the success of an eight-week pilot designed to improve maintenance and operations of public transit systems through AI monitoring and analysis. The private-public partnership included 17 companies and was funded through the city’s Transit Tech Lab. (StateScoop)
Four Senior Democratic Congressmembers, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Representatives Jim Himes (D-CT) and Joe Morelle (D-NY), sent a public letter to 25 leading technology companies expressing concern about AI-generated voting misinformation. Technology companies, including Microsoft, have released guides on how voters can use AI responsibly in the upcoming election. (NextGov)
Featured Podcast
The AI Daily Brief
AI innovations are changing what businesses can achieve, leading to significant breakthroughs and unexpected experiments. The AI Daily Brief dives into how artificial intelligence is reshaping workflow and expanding the scope and scale of what companies can do. (How AI Is Changing What Work Means – October 21, 2026 – 28-minute listen) Listen Now
Policy Spotlight
The midterm elections are under 2 weeks away, which means Americans across the country are preparing to vote. Artificial intelligence will have a profound effect on that process, with voters increasingly turning to chatbots and AI tools to answer questions about candidates, policies, and voting procedures. Voices for Innovation is sharing a guide to navigating elections in the age of AI, showing how it can help and where it is important to check and recheck before voting. See our tips on LinkedIn and share them with your networks!
This Week in Tech History
This week in 1973, John Vincent Atanasoff was officially declared the inventor of the electronic digital computer, as adjudicated by Judge Earl Larson in the landmark Honeywell v. Sperry Rand decision. The result invalidated the patent for the ENIAC computer and placed the electronic digital computer into the public domain.
Innovation Spotlight
The dodo bird is widely recognized as a symbol of human-caused extinction; the last known dodo lived more than 300 years ago on the island of Mauritius. Now, US-based company Colossal Biosciences is trying to bring it back, with the help of artificial intelligence. The company is using AI to match and construct dodo DNA from partial DNA existing in samples and close relative species. (TIME)
Thank you for reading! As always, thank you for raising your voice for public policies that foster innovation, support business growth, and enable technology to address societal challenges. Be sure to share this email with your network and encourage them to join us.
Note: Voices for Innovation regularly shares a range of opinion articles and press releases from organizations in and publications covering tech policy. These pieces are meant to educate our audience, not to endorse specific platforms or bills.