Hutto officials established an artificial intelligence use policy for city employees in October, putting guard rails on how new tools can be used in city operations and communications.

What you need to know

Hutto City Council approved an AI use policy Oct. 2, requiring that city employees complete training on AI tool use and establishing guidelines for how they can be used.

The details

The policy requires annual training through security awareness company KnowBe4, as well as during onboarding for new staff.

It also:

• Requires that technology staff deliver a training on these tools within 90 days
• States that the policy will receive quarterly "tune-ups" and be subject to annual review.
• Requires that AI content be cited and labeled, banning the use of generated video or other forms of media except for "legitimate" uses, such as educational, artistic or parody purposes that are explicitly disclosed
• Bars the submission of confidential content to AI systems
• Outlines permitted use cases, such as research, drafting, translation, summarization, analysis and productivity assistance

The policy took effect upon approval, city documents state.

More information about the policy is available within the city's Oct. 2 agenda packet, at https://tx-hutto2.civicplus.com/129/agendas-minutes-archive.

What they're saying

"This is just the first step, which is setting the guard rails and exploring [standard operating procedures] in order to limit our risk as an organization when using AI," said David Amsler, director of strategic operations for the city of Hutto.