Arizona is building its first statewide blueprint on artificial intelligence, and one of the advisers helping write it says the technology will touch every part of your life – whether you’re ready or not.
Dr. Loretta Cheeks sits on Governor Katie Hobbs’ AI Steering Committee. She’s one of 19 people tasked with answering questions that will affect every Arizonan: Where should the state deploy AI in government operations? How can it do so responsibly? Where should humans stay in control?
The computer scientist and CEO of AI consulting firm DS Innovation is direct about the technology’s potential to displace workers. But she’s equally direct about the opportunity it presents if Arizona moves wisely.
“We need to move from fear to anticipation,” Dr. Cheeks said. “It’s here. It will not go anywhere.”
The committee’s initial recommendations are expected this spring. The governor tasked the group to come up with an AI policy framework, along with recommendations on government procurement guidelines and how to prepare the state’s workforce.
The Human-in-the-Loop Rule
Last year, Arizona passed legislation banning insurance companies from denying coverage based on AI decisions alone. The law says a human doctor must be involved. It’s exactly the kind of guardrail Dr. Cheeks wants to see in other high-stakes decisions the state makes.
“When you’re talking about critical systems or things that will alter a person’s life — child welfare, determining who gets benefits, or using behavior data to detect a risk score and applying it to someone — at that time, yes, [AI] should not be solely responsible,” she said. “The human is really good at making decisions, and we should definitely keep them in the loop.”
Cheeks draws on her background in aviation, where critical systems have long required human oversight. But she’s clear about where AI can and should take over routine work, a category she calls “AI comprehension and language.”
