Introduction to the Department of Government Efficiency’s Plan

Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency are implementing a massive job cut, reportedly the "largest in American history." To mitigate the effects of letting go of tens of thousands of domain experts and civil servants, they propose using a chatbot. According to Wired, about 1,500 employees at the US General Services Administration (GSA) have been given access to a proprietary chatbot called GSAi.

The Role of GSAi

The GSA, which manages federal real estate and oversees government contracts, has already lost hundreds of employees to termination or resignation. The agency’s tech hub, 18F, has been significantly affected. GSAi, rushed out by the Department of Government Efficiency, aims to support staff with general tasks. An internal memo obtained by Wired lists tasks that GSAi can perform, including drafting emails, creating talking points, summarizing text, and writing code. However, employees are cautioned not to share nonpublic or sensitive information with the chatbot.

Limitations of GSAi

The disclaimer is understandable but limiting, especially for tasks like summarizing meeting notes or structuring data. A GSA employee described GSAi as "about as good as an intern," producing "generic and guessable answers." Notably, GSAi was in development before Musk’s involvement, with the GSA working with other agencies to develop chatbot-like interfaces.

Background on Chatbot Development

The Department of Treasury, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Education were all exploring chatbot projects. However, these chatbots were not deployed due to being "janky," according to an employee. The original intention was to build tools to facilitate employee work, not replace staff. In the case of the GSA, some of the people let go were likely working on the GSAi tool, which is now being deployed in their place.

Conclusion

The Department of Government Efficiency’s solution to the significant job cuts is a chatbot that may not be equipped to handle the complexities of government work. The skills of the terminated employees are likely more valuable than a chatbot that can perform basic tasks. The deployment of GSAi raises questions about the effectiveness of relying on chatbots to replace human expertise in the government sector.