Trust but Verify: Evaluating AI for the Public Interest

About this event

The Vals AI Public Sector Summit. About: Over the past few weeks, Washington has been consumed by three urgent AI debates: how to keep AI products safe for young people, who should independently evaluate the most powerful models, and what kind of AI deal the United States should strike with China. The stakes come into sharper focus next week, when President Trump and President Xi meet in Washington with AI on the agenda. Trust but Verify brings together the policymakers, senior congressional staff, agency leaders, and researchers shaping these decisions to chart a way forward. Together, they will examine what evidence leaders need, what commitments can be verified, and what government should do next. Hosted by Vals AI at Station DC. 3 Panels Youth Wellbeing in the Age of AI: Clinical, policy, and child safety perspectives on what it actually means for an AI system to be safe for young people: what current evaluations can and cannot tell us, and what evidence companies should be expected to produce before releasing a product to teens. Caroline Figueroa, MD, PhD: Visiting Scholar at Stanford University Marissa Edmund: State Policy Lead at the Family Online Safety Institute Jake Barr: Ropes & Gray associate and former senior congressional staffer behind KOSA, COPPA 2.0, and the Kids PRIVACY Act Andrea Mock: Moderator, Research Scientist at Vals AI Negotiating AI with China: As US and China leadership meet this month to talk AI, a discussion on what the United States should actually be willing to agree to, where Chinese model capability sits, and which commitments could be verified. Kevin Wolf: Former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration Ryan Fedasiuk: Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute Karson Elmgren: Senior Researcher at the Institute for AI Policy and Strategy Glenn Parham: Moderator, Head of Public Sector at Vals AI Government's Role in Evaluating AI: A conversation with the senior congressional staffers behind the FRONTIER Act about the role of independent evaluation organizations, what those organizations would look like in practice, who they should answer to, and how the government can adequately resource them. Will Burns: Senior Legislative Assistant for Congressman Jay Obernolte Dylan Irlbeck: Legislative Assistant for Congresswoman Lori Trahan Rayan Krishnan: Moderator, CEO and Co-founder of Vals AI Plus research poster presentations from the Vals AI team spanning our research in AI Child Safety, Cybersecurity, and Environmental Impact. Reception with drink to close. Agenda 1:30 to 2:00 Doors open: check-in, refreshments, research poster boards 2:00 to 2:15 Opening remarks 2:20 to 2:30 Topic overview: Measuring AI Safety for Youth 2:30 to 3:10 Panel: Youth Wellbeing in the Age of AI 3:15 to 3:25 Topic overview: Measuring AI in National Security 3:25 to 4:05 Panel: Negotiating AI with China 4:05 to 4:15 Break 4:15 to 5:00 Government's Role in Evaluating AI 5:00 to 7:00 Reception About Vals AI Vals AI is an independent, third party evaluator of frontier AI models, backed by Andreessen Horowitz. Our results are used by the major AI labs and by the US government, and we brief policymakers in the US and abroad on what current evaluations can and cannot show. Audience is roughly 100 policymakers, agency leaders, researchers, and advocates. Bipartisan by design. Space is limited and registration is required. Venue Station DC is located at 1323 4th St NE Ste 200, Washington DC 20002