▶ 0:09:57Okay, there we go. Can you hear me? The committee on education workforce will please come to order. A quorum is present. The committee meets today pursuant to notice. Without objection, the chair may recess the committee at any point. I want to welcome everyone uh to this hearing. Thank you for being here today.
▶ 0:10:20We're talking about, as the president said, some very important uh issues that that we're dealing with that are going to change the the way we do business and pretty much the way we do Uh I I want to welcome you to uh for those who uh came out of state uh to Georgia to the best city 12 years running to do business in.
▶ 0:10:48And Augusta, where you're sitting right now, was just named the number one best city for entrepreneurs to start a Isn't that great? And a lot of that happened right here in this innovation But today's hearing is part of this committee's building an AI ready work uh America series and will examine how artificial intelligence AI is creating e economic opportunities for American workers, job creators in our communities.
▶ 0:11:19There's no better place to hold this hearing than right here in Uh right here at the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center on Augusta University's campus. For those uh tuning in today who are unfamiliar with August with the Augusta area, Fort Gordon is just a short 30-inut drive from where we currently sit.
▶ 0:11:39It hosts the Army Cyber Center of Excellence and is home to Army Cyber School, which trains, educates, and develops the Army Cyerspace and Electronic Warfare Every year, thousands of people leave Fort Gordon looking for work. The Georgia Cyber Center was created to meet this growing demand and drive collaboration between academia, government, and industry stakeholders to equip a superior cyber security workforce with the skills they need.
▶ 0:12:08AI is playing a significant role in this mission as the technology continues to transform army defense cyber operations. Additionally, Augusta University is home to the medical college of Georgia.
▶ 0:12:22uh the university's flagship medical school which the president just said is the oldest in in the state of Georgia and uh and probably in the country but um where AI is innovating the health care industry and educating the next generation of medical professionals. AI has the potential to be a powerful engine of economic growth across the country.
▶ 0:12:46AI is enhancing workers knowledge, skills and productivity while also automating routine task and improving efficiency across every industry. As we see this technology introduced into uh is introduced into more workplaces as it is introduced in more workplaces. Our job as policy makers is to foster an environment that delivers new and greater opportunities for American workers. The potential for AI to create jobs, strengthen existing industries, and empower job creators is immense.
▶ 0:13:16But we must ensure that our policies encourage uh its responsible uh adoption so that every worker can uh benefit from these advancements. And to give an example of that, just uh just after World War II, u almost 90% of the Georgia workforce was in agriculture. and produced about 90% of the of the food needs for the state of Georgia.
▶ 0:13:46And of course, it was the number one industry. It is still the number one industry. And less than 2% of Georgians produce 120% of the food needs of Georgia. So things change and we're seeing that right before our very eyes. and uh and we're already seeing those benefits across the economy and in in certainly agriculture, manufacturing.
▶ 0:14:10AI workers are more productive, which makes American factories more competitive, strengthens domestic do domestic supply chains and supports good paying jobs. In agriculture, AI helps farmers produce more with fewer resources, ensuring food security. In medicine, AI is revolutionizing medical training, public health planning, and patient care and improving outcomes and expanding access. As we consider the role of AI in the workplace, we should be wary of a one-sizefits-all approach.
▶ 0:14:40The needs of a family farm are not the same as those of a hospital, a manufacturing plant, or small business. Congress must pursue flexible policies that allow businesses to adopt AI in ways that best suit their industry and workforce. Our goal should be to foster innovation while ensuring that businesses of every size in every corner of the country can benefit from AI. That begins by listening to the voices of workers, producers, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders to craft solutions that reflect the diversity of America's economy.
▶ 0:15:11That is exactly what today's hearing is designed to do. At the same time, we cannot take America's leadership uh in AI for granted because it is not guaranteed. Other nations are investing aggressively in AI and this technology is evolving at an incredible pace. If the United States intends to win the AI race, we must invest in the infrastructure, workforce, and innovation needed to maintain our competitive edge.
▶ 0:15:38We also need better data on how AI is impacting our workforce so policymakers can make informed decisions. and we must think carefully before we impose unnecessary regulations that could stifle in innovation or undermine Americans competitiveness. Today's hearing is an opportunity to explore how AI can strengthen our economy, create jobs, and reinforce America's leadership in innovation.
▶ 0:16:02We appreciate the insights of our witnesses and will offer uh who will offer about how AI can improve people's lives and ensure this remains a tool that serves all Americans and not the other way around. Uh with that, I yield to Representative Mcbath for an opening statement.
▶ 0:16:25Uh thank you so much, Chairman Allen, and thank you everyone for joining us today. It's so nice to be down on this side of Georgia since I usually am up on the other end of Georgia. So, I'm I'm feel very welcome to be here. I appreciate the opportunity to discuss this important issue that is affecting our community with our community.
▶ 0:16:47Right now, Americans are being pushed to the brink by an economy that works for those only that are already doing well, but not for regular people. You should not have to already have money to make money in the United States of America. We cannot allow that to become the norm for an economy that prides itself on the idea of the American dream and opportunity for all.
▶ 0:17:12Despite working harder and producing more than ever before, American families cannot afford necessities like groceries, gas, and healthcare. If we want to make life easier for working people and their families, we must build a future that empowers them to protect themselves against these rising prices.
▶ 0:17:36Artificial intelligence or AI as we know know it by will be a part of that future as my colleague representative Allen has stated. But we must act with caution and responsibility to ensure that these new technologies are working for regular people, working for all people, not making it more difficult for them to get good jobs and to keep those jobs. AI has rapidly been introduced in our lives.
▶ 0:18:06While some uses of this technology in the workplace is absolutely without a doubt going to benefit people, it also can pose signific significant concerns. Some employers have used AI as a weapon in retaliation against workers who are or to lower wages.
▶ 0:18:28The unrestricted use of AI can also infringe on workers privacy and make it harder for workers to prove that their gender, their race, their age or disability status were used to discriminate against them, which despite all of the progress that we have made in this country, unfortunately still this happens every single day.
▶ 0:18:53As I AI becomes more common, and yes, it will, we've begun to see some employers use sophisticated technology to actually monitor and evaluate their workers. This includes tracing workers on the job physical activities such as bathroom breaks, using facial recognition to assess their attention to com computer screens and other tasks.
▶ 0:19:20That is a level of surveillance and control that members of Congress would never accept for ourselves and we shouldn't expect that of the American people. Congress must also not ignore the very real concerns that families across our country and in Georgia have about the expansion of data centers.
▶ 0:19:45Ansley Brown and her family in Kawita County were one of the many that were forced to sell their family home, which will be demolished to make way for a power line to feed AI data centers.
▶ 0:20:01As AI continues to grow at a rapid pace, we have a responsibility to ensure that yes, we need the innovation, but we have a responsibility to make sure that it does not come at the expense of the people that it's meant to serve.
▶ 0:20:19The future of AI is definitely promising, but it must also be guided by the fairness, respect for people's homes, and a commitment to protecting families in Georgia and the communities they have built and lived in for generations. It is critical that the implementation of AI be a community-led effort.
▶ 0:20:43This begins by ensuring that workers and their unions have a seat at the table in the development and implementation of AI in America's workplaces. And it is the role of our local, state, and federal governments to implement safeguards to prevent employer abuse, protect people's homes, and address privacy concerns.
▶ 0:21:09Congress has the responsibility to reign in big tech companies so that AI can be used for Americans instead of being used against them. Many cities and states have put sensible guard rails in place to protect people and to ensure that AI is being used and expanded It is concerning that sever of my colleagues recently attempted to pass a moratorum on state and local
▶ 0:21:39AI regulations in the one big beautiful bill. A move that generated so much bipartisan opposition that 17 Republican governors, including the governor of Georgia, Governor Kemp, wrote to the United States Senate in opposition, warning that people will be at risk until basic rules, just basic rules, ensuring safety and fairness can be put into effect.
▶ 0:22:10We don't need another tool that will funnel profits to the top of the expense of the regular Americans doing the work to create those profits. We don't need another reason for large companies and governments to use in domain to force Georgians like Ensley Brown into abandoning their childhood homes.
▶ 0:22:34What the American people do need is for Congress to take an active role in shaping how AI is integrated into our daily lives and in developing thoughtful regulations that balance protecting people with the need for economic growth.
▶ 0:22:54I hope that today's discussion will definitely be a bipartisan path forward to ensure that Congress that my colleagues and I strike the appropriate balance on artificial intelligence and I
▶ 0:23:09The [clears throat] general lady yields. Uh pursuant to committee rule HC, all members who wish to insert written statements into the record may do so by submitting them to the committee clerk electronically in Microsoft Word format by 5:00 p. M 14 days after this hearing and without objection, the hearing record will remain open for 14 days to allow such state such statements and other extraneous material noted during the hearing to be submitted for the official hearing record.
▶ 0:23:37I will now turn to the introduction of our distinguished four witnesses. Our first witness is Mr. Pariel flounder and CEO of Mayus Mayus Bio in Boston, Massachusetts. Mr. Perry, thank you for being here. Our second witness is Mr. Brad Edenfield, a farmer and general manager of RT Farms in Burke County, Georgia. Our third witness is Mr.
▶ 0:24:03Tony Barlo, vice president at Communication Workers of America, located 3204 in Atlanta, Georgia. Our last witness is Dr. Jeffrey Talbert, professor and department chair and in AI and health and Georgia research alliance imminent scholar at the medical college of Georgia, Augusta University here in Augusta, Georgia. We thank the witnesses for being here today.
▶ 0:24:29Pursu pursuant to committee rules, I would ask that each that you each rent uh limit your oral presentation to a fivem minute summary of your written statement. You see the uh the timer right in front of you. Uh now I will first recognize Mr. Parallion for your testimony. You need to hit your microphone button too. Yes.
▶ 0:25:03Good morning Chairman Alen and members of the committee on education and workforce. My name is Ajip Parayel. I'm the founder and chief executive officer of Manis, a next generation industrial biotechnology company focused on the advanced biio manufacturing of complex natural products used in food ingredients, agricultural chemicals and essential medicines. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, holding this hearing in Augusta, Georgia.
▶ 0:25:28As a proud naturalized US citizen, I choose to raise my family here in Nagasta and built one of America's largest biio manufacturing facilities in Augusta. I was raised in a farming family in India where agriculture centered on spices, medicinal plants and other crops valued for the natural compounds they use in our everyday life.
▶ 0:25:51My early experience working in agriculture fields later studying organic chemistry fostered a lasting interest in understanding how they are formed and how they might be produced more efficiently and economically. That experience led me to fundamental question could biology provide a better approach.
▶ 0:26:11Pursuing that question ultimately brought me to the United I am grateful for the opportunity America gave me to come here and advance a frontier bioengineering technology at MIT with the support from a $2 million NIH funding.
▶ 0:26:28That work led to a powerful cellactory engineering and biommanufacturing platform technology for producing com complex chemicals that that are difficult to grow agriculturally or synthesize chemically. This become the foundation of Manas technology platform attracting hundreds of million dollars in investment supporting factories in rural America and creating jobs here at home. I founded Manis in 2011 with my colleagues from MIT.
▶ 0:26:58Over the past 15 years, we have developed and commercialized a biommanufacturing platform that helps address US critical supply chain vulnerabilities in food, medicines, and materials. By using domestic inputs such as US corn, US grown corn sugar, manus can replace foreign sourced products from sweeteners to pharmaceutical starting materials and intermediates.
▶ 0:27:23Manas acquired the Augusta bio facility in 2018 as part of our acquisition of neutrieet company. The former neutrieet facility for aspartame production had shuttered in 2014 due to competition from foreign manufacturers in China. Manus repurposed this facility for the production of bio alternatives at a fraction of the cost of building a brand new facility.
▶ 0:27:47rehired many of the original operators and trained and expanded the theme, bringing more than 150 skilled jobs back to rural Georgia and integrating them to the economy of the future. We have deliberately built out domestic manufacturing having invested more than 100 million in Augusta, Georgia through 2025 and with an anticipated total investment approximately 135 million by the end of 2026.
▶ 0:28:16Manis has commercialized multiple products out of our gastro facility. In addition to multiple flavors, our stevia sweetener, we recently announced the launch of monk fruit sweetener, the first monk fruit product that is completely decoupled to China and manufactured right here in the United States at commercial scale through industrial biommanufacturing.
▶ 0:28:38In doing so, we are demonstrating the power of American investment into the next generation technology in enabling paradigm shift in the manufacturing of natural sweeteners and ingredients, paving a path for regaining American dominance in this sector. Aligning with the make America healthy again movement, mana sweeteners provide a natural solution for tackling sugar reduction and making healthier food more affordable and accessible.
▶ 0:29:04Additionally, man has been partnering with the department of health and human services on reshoring US pharmaceutical production by leveraging biio manufacturing and continuous flow chemistry to reduce dependency on unstable foreign supply chains like China and India especially for critical medicine derived from fragile natural Manis offers a scalable solution by leveraging US innovation and domestic biommanufacturing to transform domestic feed for feed stocks like US corn into
▶ 0:29:34KSM APIs eliminating upstream checkpoints and stockpiling alone cannot fix today's hearings about ensuring the next generation of manufacturing is designed built and scaled in America. How artificial intelligence can be leveraged to create opportunities in American workforce. AI is rapidly becoming one of the defining technologies of 21st century.
▶ 0:29:54While much of the public conversation has focused on generative AI, some of the most significant opportunities lie in how AI is transforming the way we design, build, and manufacture products here at home. As a as global competition intensified, the United States has an opportunity to lead not only in deploying AI technologies, but also in deploying them to strengthen our industrial base, create highquality manufacturing jobs, drive long-term economic growth.
▶ 0:30:23This type of innovation has implications far beyond a single company or industry. AI is giving manufacturers like Manis new tools to optimize production, improve quality, reduce waste, strengthen supply chains, bringing new product to market faster. These advancements also create opportunities for American workers from software engineers, data scientists to skilled technicians, operators, and advanced manufacturing professionals supporting a stronger and more competitive domestic economy.
▶ 0:30:51I'm sorry we're out of time, but you're you've submitted your full testimony for for the record. So, u you you all have that available to you. Next, I will recognize Mr. Edenfield for your testimony. You have five minutes, sir.
▶ 0:31:08Good morning, Chairman Allen and members of the Education and Workforce Committee. I would like to thank you for the opportunity to share my experiences and opinions on how I believe artificial intelligence AI is and will continue to impact agriculture. As a fifth generation farmer, I'm very passionate about both the future and the goals of agriculture. I believe that it is a key industry not only for the state but also the nation and for the success and survival of uh both those things.
▶ 0:31:38As a farmer, I'm also acutely aware of the challenges that we face uh every day and the importance of our ability to be able to adapt to overcome those Technology in general is disruptive which can be uncomfortable and sometimes um controversial. However, it is through those changes that we create new efficiencies and reach new goals that we didn't have the opportunity in the past.
▶ 0:32:04Um, AI processes data at a rate that a human can't even fathom. But it takes an individual to be able to understand the interconnections and how to use that data to generate any type of real value. Um, in agriculture, as within other industries, we're constantly looking for ways that we can do more with less. Um, we rely on our past experiences and the experiences of those who came before us to help guide us to do that.
▶ 0:32:33When using AI, it's up to the individual to be able to determine whether or not the information that it gives us is valid. As a farmer with decades of experience, I can usually take what it gives me and be able to determine that.
▶ 0:32:49But many of farmers with decades of experience don't have a desire or an ability to use AI to be able to do that um to use it cont uh conversely the individual that has the experience and the desire to use AI typically doesn't have the background in either agriculture or whatever field to be able to use AI to really generate any value in that area or in that In agriculture, the average age of
▶ 0:33:19the farmer is continuing to to climb and it has throughout my entire time in it. And I do see AI as an opportunity uh for us to be able to potentially entice younger people into back into the fields. Um I think it creates an opportunity in education for internships between individuals who want to develop more meaningful AI platforms to partner with people that have decades worth of experience in their field to be able to advance that industry.
▶ 0:33:48Um this could lead to both new two and four-year degree opportunities, I think. But then when we look at it from a job standpoint, I think it's going to be critical for us in agriculture to really evaluate AI a AI and determine ways that we can make it be implemented in our unique operations.
▶ 0:34:06But more importantly, we're going to have to realize that we have to begin looking for a new type of employee, one that can bridge that gap between the historical type of work that we've always done and this intangible element that we may not have considered in the past. Um I do believe that uh new types of education and job opportunities could lead to a better understanding and even appreciation of our industry which could lead to more people seeking employment within it.
▶ 0:34:37Um at this time AI is currently used in our industry as a time-saving tool. But I do believe that with uh proper educational paths and adoption within the industry both in implementation but also hiring that it could be a paradigm shift uh create a paradigm shift that would revolutionize our entire industry and allow us to do more with less.
▶ 0:35:01Um I would like to thank you again for this opportunity to be able to share my decades of experience in agriculture with you and how it impacts AI. The gentleman yields. Uh, next I will call on Mr. I Next I'll recognize Mr. Barlo for your testimony. Sir, you have five minutes. Thank you. Good morning, Chairman Allen, Ranking Members McBth, and members of the committee. Thank y'all for the opportunity to testify. My name is Tony Barlo.
▶ 0:35:32I'm the vice president of CWA Local 3204, and I'm the outside plant tech. I'm outside plant temp AT&T in Atlanta. Workers across the country have seen employees racing to adopt new artificial intelligent tools. Without proper guards, AI has the potential to displace workers, degrade job quality, and undermine service quality. It is crucial that workers has the voice in this technology is used in the at the call centers in my local.
▶ 0:36:02AI are used to monitor speed up work, take away the ability to respond to customers needs, automate customers service functions to reduce headcount and create a stressful workplace environment. CWA call center workers nationwide reported that AI tools are designed to automate both frontline tasks like note-taking management functions like scheduling, training, performance evaluations in two in 2020.
▶ 0:36:30In a 2023 survey, nearly 3,000 CWA call center members reported AI tools negatively impacted their job quality. rather than improve their jobs. Most workers felt AI sped up work. It spatted monitoring discipline links to surveillance, increase workplace stress, lower job satisfaction, and it did not improve customer services.
▶ 0:36:54For example, AI tools will analy anali analyze calls in real time, providing instant feedback to managers on the aspects of customer interactions. These tools claims to measure things such as tone of voice, speaking pace, and workers following to their call script, but they can be flawed. Sometimes failing to track conversations properly or exhibiting bias in evaluating workers.
▶ 0:37:22I've heard from our members and other calling workers that these measurements can be biased against workers of colors or certain speech style, such as a southern accent. Telkom technicians working in the field and providing services at customers homes and are similarly being monitored and kept in tight schedule through real-time tracking of their locations through GPS and increasingly are directed throughout their day by automatic routing tools.
▶ 0:37:51It doesn't have to be this way. AI can empower workers building their skills and improving their ability to perform the uniquely human part of their job. but only if workers have the voice in the development and implementation of AI systems. For instance, working in a call center as a customer service agent takes real skills. It's a talent to convince a frustrated customer to not only retain their services, but to buy another service.
▶ 0:38:18Agents has the talent and the ability to identify customer needs and find out solutions. But AI can rob workers of their power to use the knowledge and skills to solve problems. the job become more sticking to a script. For years, our employers have been attempting to use technology to descale our jobs and replaced us with lower paid non-UN contractors.
▶ 0:38:42Only through collective bargaining, we have protected our jobs and placed limits on There are immediate steps that Congress can take to make sure that AI is used properly. Congress could pass the No Robot Boss Act, which prohibits employees from making, hiring, firing, and disciplinary decisions on the basis of automated software without the input of a human. We're lucky to have a collective bargaining agreement that helps protect us.
▶ 0:39:12But workers have faced workers should not face threats to their livelihood on the basis of AI decisions that may be illegal, discriminatory, or simply incorrect. Congress should also pass the keep the call centers in America act. One key part of the bill of this bill gives customers the right to be transferred to actual person rather than talking to a AI agent. This will both improve customer services and ensure smoother processes for agents by decreasing customer frustration.
▶ 0:39:43As a father of three daughters and one son, all in college, I urge Congress to take the time to get these policies right. The policy enacted will affect not only my own children but also working families across the country for years to come. These policies will determine whether families can secure a good job, support their families, build financial stability, and pursue fulfilling lives. Thank you all for the opportunity to testify before you today.
▶ 0:40:13I look forward to any questions you may have.
▶ 0:40:17I thank the gentleman. The gentleman under committee rule nine. sorry, getting ahead of myself. Uh, saving the best for last. [laughter] I recognize Dr. Talbert for your testimony. Thank you,
▶ 0:40:36Chairman Allen, Ranking Member Mcbath, and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today on how artificial intelligence is creating opportunities across America's healthcare workforce. My name is Jeffrey Talbert, professor and chair of the department of artificial intelligence and health at at Augusta University's medical college of Georgia and a Georgia research alliance eminent scholar with over 30 years of experience in biomedical informatics. The medical college of Georgia is one of the largest medical schools in the country. We provide the next generation of physician leaders with a life-saving and life-changing education.
▶ 0:41:08As a part of that education, we are teaching students how AI can be a force amplifier and contribute to better health outcomes for their patients. In healthcare, AI is increasingly demonstrating its greatest value is through augmentation. The strongest evidence shows AI helps healthcare professionals work more effectively, reduce administrative burdens, improve patient outcomes, and expand workforce capacity.
▶ 0:41:32The health care workforce faces staffing shortages, rising administrative demands, burnout, and retention challenges. More than 40% of physicians report symptoms of burnout, and many spend substantial portions of their day documenting care rather than providing it. One of the healthcare industry's most successful AI applications is ambient document technology. This converts clinical conversations into draft notes that clinicians review and approve.
▶ 0:42:00Multiple studies show these tools reduce documentation burden, after hours work, and burnout. One multi-system implementation of these tools found clinician burnout fell from approximately 52% to 39%. AI is also producing measurable improvements in healthcare quality and medical discovery. For example, large studies of AI assisted breast cancer screenings have shown approximately 29% higher cancer detection, helping more patients benefit from earlier diagnosis and treatment.
▶ 0:42:31AI is also demonstrating the potential to predict serious complications before they occur. Deep learning models have been shown to predict acute kidney injury up to 48 hours before traditional clinical FDA cleared AI systems for diabetic retinopathy can identify patients at risk for preventable blindness in primary care settings, allowing interventions before disease We are also beginning to see AI accelerate the development of new medicines.
▶ 0:43:00One AI discovered drug candidate to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis advanced to human clinical testing in 30 months, about half the time commonly required for traditional drug discovery programs. AI shortens development timelines and brings promising therapies more quickly. As organizations adopt these technologies, there is increasing demand for new roles in AI implementation, oversight, education, and operations.
▶ 0:43:26These this includes professionals who can evaluate, manage, and safely deploy AI enabled systems. In closing, the strongest evidence suggests that AI delivers the greatest value when it amplifies human expertise rather than replaces it. This allows health care professionals to spend their time caring for patients, detecting, diagnosing, and treating disease earlier, and accelerating scientific discovery.
▶ 0:43:51By using AI to enhance care, we can create a healthier population and a stronger, more capable workforce. America's opportunity is not simply to adopt AI, but to lead responsible development and education and implementation. That is why Augusta University established the department of AI and health at the Medical College of Georgia, the first department of its kind in Georgia to advance AI research, support groundbreaking achievements in translational science, and support responsible implementation of AI in clinical practice.
▶ 0:44:20Again, thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. I look forward to your questions.
▶ 0:44:26Good. Thank you, Dr. Talbert. And the gentleman yields. Now under committee rule 9, we will now question witnesses under the five-minute rule. I will recognize myself for five minutes. Mr. Pariel, your company has developed and commercialized a biio manufacturing platform that helps address US supply chain vulnerabilities in food, medicines, and other materials.
▶ 0:44:53In what ways does artificial intelligence make the work you do at Manis possible? And you need turn on your mic sir.
▶ 0:45:06Thank you for that question. It's there as a multi- multi-prong effect coming here from what our company does is we create cell factories which can consume US produced corn and make this product at a commercial scale. So this is most advanced biotechnological processes.
▶ 0:45:27There the design engineering of that self we call self factory is very critical that is America innovated invented and innovated in this technology last 25 years right with the advancing that technology using AI what man has collected last 15 years of the data using that data we implemented AI for advanced design and engineering of that cell factories right then the next is what is our biggest challenge is
▶ 0:45:57can you produce at home at scale and economically that's where what we are practicing in Nagasa bringing AI to help our team to implement that commercial scale operation of the technology
▶ 0:46:13can this be used not in other apply it to other manufacturing processes
▶ 0:46:18absolutely okay
▶ 0:46:20all right uh Mr. Ed in your written testimony uh discusses AI's potential to help tackle workforce challenges in farming and agriculture. What kinds of workforce opportunities are you already seeing in agriculture as a result of this technology?
▶ 0:46:36Um yes. So agriculture in general as I mentioned before we have an aging workforce. Um in general younger people typically don't like or have been attracted to the type of work that we do. Uh in addition the cost to enter our industry is usually very high. So that can create conflicts of ability to do that. Um I know that farm it's not a secret that in most cases farm work uh families are generational.
▶ 0:47:04Uh what we've seen though is a lot of times the younger generation not having that same desire to come back and work on the farm. But personally, I know of a number of individuals who went into other industries and now after five to 10 years of doing something else, AI has created an opportunity for them to come back to their family's farm.
▶ 0:47:23And you mentioned that you think younger people will be drawn to agriculture as a result of this technology.
▶ 0:47:31Good. Uh Dr. Ch your written testimony talks about how AI workforce value in medicine healthcare lies and augmenting the role of workers and not replacing them. Why is it important to increase workforce capacity in the medical field?
▶ 0:47:49Um sure. Um AI creates better patient care by taking the administrative burdens off of the clinicians that are there. So what we're really trying to do is to try to reduce this burnout, make physicians more happy with their job. um and all clinicians more happy with their job. We don't want them to leave and go take jobs elsewhere. So, by using these AI administrative tools that can really make their jobs easier and more effective, we're hoping that it'll make them happier, they'll stay in their jobs longer, and we'll have more healthcare workers in our workforce.
▶ 0:48:18So, how does this expand uh in create demand for new roles in health
▶ 0:48:26So, as AI is implemented, we're seeing that we need new types of workers. And we've talked about this a couple of us on this panel today. So in healthcare as you implement AI, you need new staff that can work on the implementation challenges, work on the regulatory challenges, work on how to train the current workers that are there to be able to use those tools. So we're having to hire a lot of new people just to manage the AI as it moves forward.
▶ 0:48:48So there's lots of new opportunities for current staff to get retrained to be able to support some of these tools as well as to hire new staff to come in and help manage as AI is implemented across the healthcare industry. Okay. Great. Thank you. All right. Uh now I will go to uh Mr.
▶ 0:49:07Miss McBth.
▶ 0:49:07Miss McBath for your five minutes of
▶ 0:49:11Thank you so much, Chairman. Thank you so much for each and every one of you. I've just been taking lots of copious notes because I really um am interested in this uh everything that you've said this morning. And Dr. Telbert, you know, thank you so much for being here. We appreciate it. And many Americans are familiar with AI, but they are less familiar with um the use of it in healthcare.
▶ 0:49:33And so can you please discuss what your understanding is of AI competency in language in which most people can understand um you know in fields like healthc care um and what that looks like and you know you've already kind of touched upon what this means for us in the future but if you want to expand upon that that would be great.
▶ 0:49:54a couple of distinctions I'll make to kind of respond to I think the the the keynote of your question which is how how competent is the AI that is that we're using in healthcare and the first thing to note is that the FDA actually right now regulates about I think they have 1450 approved AI tools um those have been around the first ones were approved in the late 1990s and so these are anytime you go and have an MRI a CT scan or an X-ray the radiologist that reads that and the machine that actually does the scan those machines actually use AI as part of that process and reported
▶ 0:50:24advanced tools that are FDA approved tools to those clinicians to help them understand that um the approval process for that goes through something very similar to medications. So to get a medication approved, you know, it has to go through the this the clinical trial process and to to be um approved. So the AI tools go through the same process um or very similar process that that those drugs go through. Um now different types of tools in AI. So, let's say um I create an AI tool to predict how many people are going to not show up for their clinic appointment today.
▶ 0:50:53Well, that's very useful in the clinic, but that doesn't require AI approval because it doesn't impact direct patient care. It's just an administrative tools. So, I can make that and market that and sell it um as much as I want to. So, then there's lots of those kind of AI tools that are using generative AI things um to to be used in in the clinic. So the quality of those tools really depends on the quality of the company that developed it or the people that developed it and how it's used and implemented.
▶ 0:51:17So this is my point of why we need these these new staff that can come in and help monitor these tools, make sure that the performance is adequate for what they think it's doing and it's doing things
▶ 0:51:27Okay. Thank you very much. I appreciate that. Mr. Barlo, often times headlines focus on the chances that technology will lead to workers being laid off, as you've just already kind of suggested, can happen. But even when workers keep their jobs, the quality of those jobs can change with the arrival of these new techn technologies.
▶ 0:51:47For example, technologies might make it easier for bosses to monitor employee activity or workers might be forced to use frustrating and clunky computer programs that they don't understand, but they're using them trying to learn how to use them in order to get their jobs done. Can you speak about why it's important for management to consult with workers? You've touched upon it just briefly, but if you would expound upon that just a little bit more. It's important uh as you said for management to consult with workers be before adopting this new
▶ 0:52:18Yes. Yes. Thank you for that question. As you can see we have experts in certain fields that's here doctors for healthcare and and agriculture and so forth. But I do believe that workers are the experts that actually are doing their job dayto-day. Um they know the technology. They know is going to help them do their job and make it better u rather than making their lives a little harder. uh workers have a clear understanding of what is needed that is necessary to get the job done.
▶ 0:52:45Um they they know the day-to-day task what is needed for that job. Um so if workers are not consulted AI tools can actually slow down the process of them doing their job, make their work a little less efficient. Um and it just doesn't affect workers. It also impact the customers and also the business in the process by slow slowing things down because it's not being implemented properly.
▶ 0:53:08Okay. Thank you. One more question for you too. We've heard about AI being used to evaluate workers performance and you've even kind of touched upon that. This is sometimes called algorithm algorithmic management. Have members of your union experienced these kinds of programs being used to judge their work?
▶ 0:53:26Yes. So as vice president of my local um I heard from call center members that AI do evaluate um but they don't always it it shouldn't work the way they should. uh like workers of colors have said that AI um can be biased and discriminatory. Um these tools often don't recognize certain pronunciations as speech styles. Um this can be a real problem here in Georgia where many workers here have southern accents.
▶ 0:53:52Um when AI can make mistake um it can make a member livelihood at risk u even though through discipline or losing extra pay. um give create a little extra more stress at work, lower job satisfactory um and it just I I just feel like it just it's a less job satisfactory for my members. People have become unhappy and the work is is not being done properly.
▶ 0:54:18Okay, thank you so much. I yield and I'm out of time.
▶ 0:54:22The gentle lady yields. Now, it is my privilege to uh recognize my dear friend from across the river uh in South Carolina uh and uh I think probably the senior member on the committee of education workforce uh my dear friend Joe Wilson for his five minutes of
▶ 0:54:44and and thank you very much Mr. chairman and indeed ladies and gentlemen I'm grateful to be here and neighbors of the counties that I represent Aken and Barnwall I just I'm I'm grateful to be here with you uh and hey I'm so happy to hear this is number one community because we adopt it too I uh indeed North Augusta you hey all of this is inseparable and then I want you to know too that uh in the future in South Carolina that both candidates for governor are going to be working to together to be uh cooperative
▶ 0:55:15State Representative Germaine Johnson of Columbia and the Attorney General of South Carolina, Alan Wilson, my oldest son of Lexington. Um, both candidates for governor of South Carolina are going to be working together in bipartisanship to maintain the interstate cooperation. Additionally, I'm grateful to be here with Chairman Rick Allen.
▶ 0:55:37Uh I I only regret Robin's not here, but um uh we just so appreciate uh I uh again it's an example of working together uh on the Savannah River site on every issue known to um Fort Gordon and how exciting cyber command and then uh new Savannah lock and dam over and over again. It's uh bystate cooperation and then bipartisanship. Uh Congresswoman Lucy McBth is a living example this week.
▶ 0:56:05uh she uh working with Congressman uh Burgess Owens of Utah and chairman uh Mike uh Susie Tim Wahlberg uh some great legislation has been approved this week uh for the committee for the American people. So I'm grateful to be here with her. And then it's meaningful to me to be here. My family heritage, my grandfather Wilson was born across the river Beach Island in 1888 and great-grandfather Wilson 1860. And then to be here with President Russell Keane, the heritage continues.
▶ 0:56:34Uh we were both born in the holy city of Charleston, South Carolina. So I'm grateful to be here with the president. With that in mind, Mr. PAL uh we have a challenge from China in regard to uh AI and being more productive and innovative.
▶ 0:56:51Uh how can we indeed become address this I think how fast we can implement AI [clears throat] responsibly and uh and how do we democratize AI is going to be critical to our manufacturing sector to improve the productivity of our workforce is is the critical to competition bringing you know competing to China.
▶ 0:57:21So let me maybe real life example right if you go back to our warehouse that is kind of a lower level job in in this manufacturing sector right the the person who runs the warehouse he may he normally manage all the incoming raw materials and everything traditionally he need to scan it wait read lot of papers now Ellie could control an AI agent is helpful to Ellie to manage it because you scan it He in
▶ 0:57:51a fraction of second he know that one the material coming in is high quality good quality you know is this one so it's improving the productivity of people and people will be happy the AI is not not managing LA but LA is managing AI right so it's a reverse so how fast we can implement these advanced technologies to competition is China is going to be compet because China we cannot compete on labor cost with China only way advanced technologies we can compete with China
▶ 0:58:20and and indeed To me, it's exciting to see jobs being created by the new technology. And Mr. Edenfield, you've done great on agriculture. Specific crops are of interest to me. Uh peaches, uh pecans, cotton. How uh how can AI address specific crops?
▶ 0:58:40Certainly. So, in agriculture, we're clearly limited on a number of u issues, but number one is acreage. every year we're losing more and more acres to different types of development. And so we can use AI to potentially try to find those opportunities for us to increase I feel like two real ways that's time and money to find efficiencies.
▶ 0:58:59And so uh um as a cotton farmer, you know, trying to determine the right types of uh helping it help make decisions on trying to use exactly which varieties and timing of of applications and things to be able to be more efficient, I think would be opportunities there. Well, again, it's exciting to see productivity and new jobs. And Dr. Talbert indeed uh on Fox and Friends this morning as I was coming here, they were going over how advances in AI are helping uh address cancer uh recovery.
▶ 0:59:30And so, how would you u present that?
▶ 0:59:34I think a lot of those tools around um really increasing um detection of disease earlier um really comes from some of the AI tools around imaging. So a lot of the the work that I talked about with breast cancer screening, they're able to look at the images and screen the images better and see things sooner than human beings can see. Same things with colon screenings and others. So it's really applying the best technology to those use cases to help physicians make better decisions.
▶ 0:59:56You here? I yield back.
▶ 1:00:00Gentlemen yields. Uh and u again I want to thank everyone for being here today. And I will now uh recognize Mrs. McBath for her closing remarks.
▶ 1:00:13Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I do want to say I actually had a chance to go to one of our advanced manufacturing um product manufacturers called QCLS just last week. And so we got a chance to see really a great expanded usage of AI and technology there. So I just wanted to put that plug in there as well. But thank you chairman. Thank you once again to everyone for joining us today.
▶ 1:00:39Artificial intelligence does present many, many opportunities as you've heard, but we must ensure that we're not leaving anyone behind. To strike that balance, Americans must be central to the conversation about AI in the workplace rather than just having it imposed on them. While there are major benefits, AI can also pose great risks to worker security and privacy. used and expanded properly.
▶ 1:01:06And I think that's what we're all looking trying and trying to move forward to is using AI properly. AI can't um you know, if we don't, it's going to degrade jobs for the people who are actually doing them, but it it will increase invasive workplace surveillance practices and erode property rights for Georgians who have lived here for generations. We must also recognize that AI's impact uh it extends beyond the workplace and we've heard that this morning.
▶ 1:01:34Communities in Georgia hosting data centers are facing real strains on the water and energy usage and some Georgians are even being forced out of their homes to make way for data centers and for power lines. Economic development should not come at the expense of public health or our environment and certainly not people's homes. Technology itself is not the problem. That's not the problem.
▶ 1:01:58The problem is deploying powerful tools without guard rails, without transparency or input from the people that will be impacted by it the most. When our government steps back, we don't get neutrality. We get rules written by and for those with the most wealth and power in our society. But is our responsibility as lawmakers to make sure that we keep our hands on the pulse to make sure that AI technology works efficiently and effectively for everyone.
▶ 1:02:29AI should be a tool that works for all people, not one that only extracts value for those who don't live in our communities while leaving our friends and our neighbors to absorb the cost. Congress has a responsibility to act now and establish guard rails on AI use that balance protecting people along with the growth, economic growth that AI does pose.
▶ 1:02:52So, I look forward to working with my colleagues to find real solutions that center on the needs of everyday American people. Thank you all for participating today. Thank you for being here. And I yield the balance of my time.
▶ 1:03:07The gentle lady yields. Um I want to thank our witnesses today for sharing your perspective on how AI is uh creating um all these economic and workforce opportunities and um as my dear friend Joe Wilson mentioned uh this is a global challenge.
▶ 1:03:27Um, we are the greatest economic power in the world and uh I believe that's a mantle that's given to us by the grace of God and but yet if we don't be obedient to that uh uh I think God will give it to someone else, another nation. Um and can you imagine what the world would look like uh if we weren't trying to keep peace around the world uh right now?
▶ 1:03:57And obviously AI is important. Uh in fact we mentioned the cyber center of excellence and what's going on there. I'm telling you let's give those guys a hand because they have played a major [applause] they have played a major role in uh what we've been able to accomplish militarily and in keeping peace.
▶ 1:04:21I will tell you this, you know, we're privy to a lot of information in Congress and you know, we have a lot of classified briefings and uh our Secretary Rubio was asked a question by one one of my colleagues about, you know, how how do you feel about putting our military in arms way like we did in he said, "Well," he said, "you know the problem was the weather.
▶ 1:04:51We had to wait till the weather cleared." When the weather cleared, we knew what Mander had for dinner, and we knew exactly where he and his wife were Now, folks, that is the power that we have right here in Augusta, Georgia. The power to know where our enemies are and how to deal with them.
▶ 1:05:15in a very very dangerous world and AI is going to determine a lot of that success going forward. Not trying to scare anybody but we are in a global uh situation here and again we you know we have to do this responsibly and Um, you know, it's going to change the workplace.
▶ 1:05:41Um, and uh and and I'll tell you, you know, I ran a business for 40 years and I had a a young young man that was very technical and we and we were the tip of the spear on technology in our company, which made us very But I'll tell you, I I finally said, "We're not spending any more money on technology in this country till we figure out how to use what we have because that's how fast it's moving." Uh,
▶ 1:06:11as discussed today, AI has a real potential to help us keep manufacturing in America. We are moving manufacturing back to America. This is good news for our workforce. And in fact, you know, I've told uh every labor union, I've told every business, you know, we must train the future workforce for our country to build this manufacturing base.
▶ 1:06:39GDP growth is to reducing our deficit. And there's nothing holding us back other than the training. you know, the creates GDP and uh and you know, of course, southern accent. I get I get I get a lot of comments on my accent, so I I I identify with you on that one.
▶ 1:07:04Uh but, uh AI can help us train doctors to meet the needs of our health care system and help doctors spend more time with patients and less time charting. AI can help farmers to do more with less and lower the barriers to entry for Americans who want to uh work in farming and uh agriculture. And u and I'll tell you our production per acre is off the charts. Nobody nobody can touch us.
▶ 1:07:31Well, this has been a a an eyeopening event. We're going to have other hearings across the country on this because in Congress, as Representative McBth says, we we want to get this right and the only way we get it right is listen to the American people. And so, uh, Lucy, thank you for being here today and taking time to do this. And Joe, um, thank you for, um, uh, coming over.
▶ 1:08:02Um we we we we got in very late last night. So um in fact for a while there I was afraid we weren't going to be here. [laughter] Speaker said on Tuesday we're going to get this stuff done and we're going to be here till we get it done. And uh we got a lot done last week. And so uh uh and now we'll be in the districts now for the next month. So uh explaining to folks a lot about AI and some of the fears there.
▶ 1:08:29So, uh, I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress and this administration to make the promise of AI and make sure it is fulfilled for all Americans, American workers and job creators. I would like to uh again thank our witnesses for testifying before the committee today. And without objection, there being no further business, the committee stands adjourned.