US Commerce Dept. rebrands Biden’s AI Safety Institute as CAISI, shifts focus to national security and innovation
The Department of Commerce announced on June 3 a major overhaul of the Biden-Harris administration’s National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) US AI Safety Institute (USAISI). It is now the US Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI).
Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick framed the switch as a push to sharpen America’s edge in AI competition and counter foreign AI threats. CAISI’s mission zeroes in on national security, evaluating US AI capabilities, and defending against “burdensome and unnecessary regulation of American technologies by foreign governments.” 
This is a sharp break from USAISI’s earlier focus on broad AI safety science through collaboration with academia and civil society. CAISI now serves as “industry’s primary point of contact,” marking a tilt toward innovation and industry interests over public accountability.
Serena Oduro, Policy Manager at Data & Society, noted the removal of bias and discrimination from CAISI’s core agenda:
“Years of research aimed at addressing well-documented AI harms are being cast to the wayside as innovation is being framed as the only concept that matters.”
The shift mirrors political tensions around AI governance. The Biden-era USAISI aimed for multi-stakeholder engagement. The new CAISI appears more insular, focused on US dominance and less on international cooperation.
This pivot comes as the UK also changed its AI Safety Institute to the UK AI Security Institute in early 2025, prioritizing national security risks but explicitly sidelining bias and free speech concerns.
The international network of AI safety collaborations now looks uncertain, with CAISI’s mandate to “guard against burdensome…regulation” putting cooperation under strain.
Oduro warns this new direction sidelines civil society and non-industry voices right as AI safety demands wider input:
“The future of AI science and accountability hangs in the balance while industry takes its seat beside the throne.”
For now, the original USAISI consortium remains active, hosting over 280 organizations focused on evidence-backed AI standards. But it’s unclear if close cooperation with the government under CAISI will continue.
Read the Commerce statement on the CAISI rebrand here.
