By SUSAN ORR
Indianapolis Business Journal
Indiana has some advantages — but also some challenges — when it comes to the economic opportunities associated with the emergence of artificial intelligence, U.S. Sen. Todd Young said Wednesday during the Rally innovation conference in Indianapolis.
Young’s remarks were part of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce’s AI Leadership Summit, which is part of the larger Rally event at the Indiana Convention Center.
One of Indiana’s strengths, Young said, is in the role its higher education institutions play in educating the next generation of tech workers. Ivy Tech Community College is one example of this, Young said. The school has developed programs to train workers for the state’s emerging semiconductor industry, producing microchips that power computers and other electronic devices.
But Young also acknowledged that Indiana’s K-12 education system needs to do a better job of giving students a strong foundation in math and science. Students who lack this foundation, he said, are ill-equipped to pursue higher-level studies in these subjects.
“We’ve got to figure that out,” Young said. “Our state leaders, I know they’re doing everything they can. It takes a while. But this should focus minds, because this is a geopolitical competition in addition to an economic competition.”
On a national level, Young said he also favors making it easier for legal immigrants — especially foreign college students — to remain in the U.S. after graduation.
“We are educating the world’s best minds to become even more talented, more productive,” Young said. “And then we tell them, ‘You’re not welcome here. We don’t want you to stay and create a business and grow our economy. Instead, we want to send you away.’ It is asinine. It’s not the only thing that’s happening in this country that’s asinine, but it’s one of the biggest ones.”
Young also said Indiana should lean into its existing strengths to capture the economic opportunities AI will provide.
“Let’s leverage our existing expertise and not try to become Silicon Valley. Just become a better, more effective version of ourselves and we will be a national leader and international leader in this space.”
