HireVue Goes to the Hill with Technology Executives for TechNet Day

Artificial intelligence is changing every aspect of life as we know it. Hiring is no exception, and because of this, the HireVue team has always been at the forefront of legislative and regulatory conversations in the US and abroad. 

Some of our recent work has been with TechNet, a bipartisan network of technology CEOs and senior executives that promote the growth of the innovation economy. They invited HireVue to participate in six different sessions with representatives of the US Congress and Commerce Department to discuss advancing America’s leadership in AI. Here are my takeaways after meeting with over 30 Senators, Representatives, and the Assistant Secretary of Commerce and his staff: 

TechNet Day & AI legislation  

The number of bills being proposed at the local level is staggering. One Google executive explained that California alone has proposed 55 bills about various AI topics. I added to the record that, 

“The number of local laws being proposed around AI has become untenable for technology companies to manage and is negatively impacting innovation.”

Despite the chilling effect of numerous disjointed bills, many representatives and members of the Commerce Department made it clear they felt a large sweeping federal AI bill wasn’t feasible. They did however recommend:

• Any regulation on AI needs to be topic-specific (e.g. hiring), especially considering the vast and domain-specific existing regulations that can already apply to AI. 
• Data privacy should continue to be a top concern. There are several bi-partisan bills in the works and the public can expect additional white papers and thought leadership directions to continue being released (e.g., Senate AI Policy Roadmap and White House Executive Order).

HireVue supports the need for greater regulation of AI and employment. We believe ongoing dialogue with appropriate stakeholders is the key to creating sensible standards that protect candidates, companies, and innovation. 

I was invited to speak about designing Responsible AI and specifically mitigating bias in employment. I reiterated some of our long-held principles for the group:

1. The design of AI tools must be guided by foundational science (e.g., IO Psychology in employment). 
2. A strong foundation of science improves standardization and fairness. 
3. Any AI hiring tool should provide auditable evidence of actual outcomes of diversity and job performance improvements.

Looking ahead

Generally, it didn’t feel like AI in employment was a top concern to lawmakers and policy experts given how many guardrails already exist to protect candidates and employees. Attendees were much more focused on the ramifications of disinformation and misinformation in an election year and STEM-related immigration laws. 

Less than two weeks after I returned from DC, HireVue signed a joint letter calling on Congress to prioritize funding for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) fiscal year 2025 budget request. And not long before that, HireVue announced that we joined the U.S. Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute Consortium, which was established by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), as part of our efforts to advance the creation of ethical artificial intelligence.

Pushing HR technology toward more rigorous standards of fairness and ethics is a key priority for us as a business. It was heartening to hear several versions of the comment that “HireVue is doing quality work” throughout the day, and we will continue to participate in this type of work because stricter standards require that all vendors meet the high bar we have supported since the beginning.