Rebooting Democracy in the Age of AI

Following the success of a 1,200-person pilot across eight state agencies, New York is scaling InnovateUS' AI training initiative to more than 100,000 state employees, the largest program of its kind in the nation. Read the NYS press release detailing the expansion, which focuses on helping public servants build the skills and knowledge to responsibly use emerging technologies for the public good.

This piece by John Wihbey and Jill Abramson distills lessons from the InnovateUS Amplify workshop series, where public-sector communicators grappled with how AI is reshaping their work amid declining public trust. Across sessions, we learn that AI can accelerate research, synthesis, and storytelling, but it cannot replace judgment, verification, or institutional values. As communicators adopt new tools, the opportunity lies in using AI to strengthen transparency, credibility, and connection with the public, rather than erode them.

This week on Reboot Democracy, Sarosh Nagar and David Eaves examine what it will take for governments to govern AI agents already operating in open environments, from building trust infrastructure to managing multi-agent risks. Alister Martin and the Link Health team show how pairing AI with human navigators can help close the public benefits gap, underscoring the need for stronger evidence to guide investment. Beth Simone Noveck reflects on the challenges of teaching democratic engagement in the age of AI, highlighting the tradeoffs behind course design. Beyond Reboot, the White House announced new appointments to the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, as emerging work in AI ethics and political theory argues that AI systems need “normative competence” to function in democratic contexts. California is moving to limit AI workplace surveillance, New York City schools have introduced guidance, and the National Science Foundation has launched a nationwide effort to build AI readiness. Evidence of chatbot dependency is prompting calls for safeguards, a wrongful arrest tied to facial recognition underscores persistent challenges, and globally, export controls continue to struggle to contain AI proliferation.