Speaking at Pittsburgh’s AI Horizons Summit, Shapiro announced statewide AI upgrades for public employees and detailed training, oversight and economic goals.
PITTSBURGH — Pennsylvania will expand access to advanced generative artificial intelligence tools for qualified state employees, Gov. Josh Shapiro said.
The announcement was made at the AI Horizons Summit in Pittsburgh on Thursday. Shapiro framed the move as a way to speed up services and strengthen the state’s innovation economy.
The commonwealth launched a ChatGPT Enterprise pilot last year and will now give employees access to Microsoft Copilot, giving them what the administration described as the most advanced suite of generative AI tools offered by any state. Officials said the expansion is aimed at improving productivity while keeping safeguards in place for privacy, accuracy and transparency.
Shapiro delivered the update to an audience of more than 900 technology, business and academic leaders gathered for the summit. He also appeared on a panel with Westinghouse interim CEO Dan Sumner and Bank of New York Mellon CEO Robin Vince, moderated by Carnegie Mellon University President Farnam Jahanian, the administration said.
“Pennsylvania is leading the way when it comes to embracing innovation and putting artificial intelligence to work for people,” Shapiro said. “We’re doing it responsibly, with the training and safeguards in place to protect our workers and the public.”
Officials said Pennsylvania has been recognized among the top three states for AI readiness. A statement from the administration said that Shapiro’s 2023 executive order established rules for state use of AI that are grounded in values such as accuracy, privacy, equity and transparency.
According to the state, the pilot with OpenAI has saved employees an average of 95 minutes a day.
Beyond government operations, Shapiro highlighted new industry and academic partnerships announced at the summit. BNY and Carnegie Mellon University unveiled a five-year, $10 million collaboration to establish the BNY AI Lab at CMU’s School of Computer Science, focusing on governance, trust and accountability in mission-critical systems, the administration said.
Google has also launched an AI Accelerator for Pennsylvania small businesses that offers free training and tools to help entrepreneurs streamline operations and cut costs, officials said.
The governor cast the AI push as part of a broader economic plan. His administration said that since taking office, the state has tallied more than $25.6 billion in private-sector commitments that it says created over 12,400 jobs.
That total includes Amazon’s initial $20 billion for AI and cloud campuses, described as the largest private investment in state history.
