Fairfax County leaders continue to take preparatory steps toward more aggressively tackling impacts of artificial intelligence on the local economy and workforce.
The county government had “dozens of applicants” respond to a request for proposals to help develop an “AI Economy Action Plan,” Rebecca Moudry, director of the Fairfax County Department of Economic Initiatives, told local elected officials and business leaders on Tuesday (March 10).
Moudry briefed members of the Board of Supervisors’ Council for Economic Opportunity (CEO) after county leadership directed staff last June to start developing plans to address AI’s impacts locally.
Moudry said a firm is expected to be selected in the coming weeks. It will have three main areas of focus:
- Synthesizing research related to AI across the region
- Convening a summit of key stakeholders
- Implementing framework plans
Selecting a firm to do the work was delegated to the Northern Virginia Regional Commission. Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck, who chairs CEO, said the county government fully stands behind the effort.
“We’re here to support that innovation,” he said.
The impacts of artificial intelligence were also top of mind when local leaders were briefed on state economic development efforts later in the meeting.
“We are beginning to see the impacts,” Jason El Koubi, president and CEO of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, said.
El Koubi acknowledged that despite potential upsides in increased productivity, AI also holds the “possibility of mass layoffs, mass displacement.”
“The environment we’re navigating now is as complex as anything I’ve seen,” he said.
Ashwan Bharath, executive chair of the technology firm Revature and a member of the CEO panel, said Virginia must position itself to have workers with the skills needed for the evolving workplace.
“Talent pipeline is quite critical,” he said. “New jobs are created on a new paradigm — really high-paying jobs.”
“We’re going to have to become so much smarter and responsive, put more horsepower into marketing our strengths,” El Koubi said, noting that “the other states that are really strong in economic development are our competitors, and most are our neighbors.”
Moudry, who has been in her post since 2019, said leaders in the region are doing what they can to support state initiatives. The goal moving forward is to best determine “how Northern Virginia really strategically positions ourselves.”
She said the end goal was “positioning Fairfax County and the region as a global leader” on AI.
“This is a deep and evolving topic,” she said.
Commission members will get an update at their next meeting, slated for June 16.
The spelling of Rebecca Moudry’s name has been corrected.
