The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) released its National Security Science & Technology Strategy (NSSTS), outlining how federal agencies should leverage U.S. innovation to strengthen national defense. The strategy emphasizes expanding R&D, strengthening the scientific workforce, and deepening partnerships with industry and allies to build a more focused, resilient, agile, and secure national security enterprise. Coverage can be found in Nextgov/FCW and ExecutiveGov.
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This Week in Washington
- Nextgov: In an internal memo, Labor Department (DOL) officials advocated for wide implementation of artificial intelligence to navigate, sort, and lessen the back-and-forth of disability accommodation appeals. The DOL hopes AI will allow case managers to triage more effectively and reduce a backlog of hundreds of cases.
- Tech Times: The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), a congressional advisory body, released a report detailing how China’s data purchasing ecosystem, including the World Data Organization, is cutting into American leadership in the AI race. China launched the World Data Organization in March 2026 with 40 other countries.
- Politico: With Congress out of session for August recess, a bipartisan delegation of U.S. Representatives traveled to the Vatican to meet with Pope Leo XIV on artificial intelligence. The panel was coordinated by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.
Article Summary
- Reuters: The data center boom has been a boon for American manufacturing. A new Reuters deep dive examines the unexpected industries riding the wave of new projects. Among the winners: manufacturers of generators, cooling systems, steel bearings, and electrical transformers.
- Stateline: Large and small cities across the country are launching innovative AI-based solutions to speed up housing permitting and reduce backlogs. Honolulu was among the first cities to implement a system, with cities from Los Angeles to Naples, Florida, following suit.
- StateScoop: California Governor Gavin Newsom directed California agencies to establish an AI cyber defense program under the state’s Cybersecurity Integration Center. The program will create a new AI cybersecurity officer role within each agency that will use AI to proactively identify and defend against cybersecurity threats.
- Industrial Cyber: New York State announced an additional $9 million in cybersecurity grants to help defend local water systems from attacks. The funding increases the state’s investment in water system cybersecurity from a previously announced $2.5 million as Governor Kathy Hochul looks to respond to a wave of cyberattacks on water infrastructure in July.
Featured Highlight
- TED Tech
Parents across the country are innovating and applying AI to the challenges of raising children. As they do, they are finding new strategies to help coordinate schedules and smooth over chaos, while also learning where human involvement is most important. TED Tech provides both sides of the story with two talks on parenting in the age of AI. (How to Parent in the Age of AI – August 14, 2026 – 27-minute listen)
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