OPM keen on using AI to increase ‘efficiency' of jobs — as federal agency cuts staff by one-third

New York Post

6 days ago

WASHINGTON — The Office of Public Management is interested in using AI to increase 'efficiency' of jobs in its quest to downsize the US government, the agency's new director told reporters Monday.
Scott Kupor, a former venture capitalist, said he has a 'Silicon Valley' mentality when it comes to motivating employees and maximizing performance, and is looking to integrate AI into some of the agency's tasks.
'I view AI as probably the most significant disinflationary technology that I think we have seen yet today,' Kupor told The Post in a meeting with reporters.
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'What I mean by that is basically AI, however you deploy it, it's not gonna replace everybody's jobs, but I think AI can massively increase the efficiency of a lot of jobs, and certainly, as we know, it'll probably create new job opportunities as well.'
3 Scott Kupor, Director of the Office of Personnel Management, hopes to integrate AI into the federal agency.
AP
While AI won't be used to cut jobs outright, the agency has been working to drastically downsize its number of employees.
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OPM is on track to cut one-third of its staff by Dec. 31, largely through voluntary departures, from 3,110 employees to around 2,000.
The number of contractors used by OPM is also set to be slashed from 1,200 to about 600, the agency said.
Kupor mentioned customer service and information combing — like going through the tens of thousands of comments the agency gets — as some of the tasks potentially fit for artificial technology.
While the hard writing of OPM is not what he's looking to change with AI, Kupor said its 'hard to imagine' that in a few years we won't be able to 'significantly increase the efficiency' of the comment reading process 'by at least having some of that summarization, some of the kind of information gathering, information dissemination being enhanced by AI.'
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3 The Theodore Roosevelt Federal Building headquarters of the US Office of Personnel Management in Washington, DC.
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As the agency's new head, he said he wants OPM employees to be 'prepared' for work in an AI 'forward way' — as President Trump has made clear he wants the US to be the global leader in AI innovation.
'I think it's a good bet that the types of jobs that we will need five or 10 years from now will be different. The types of skills we will need will be different. And I'd like to make sure that as we think about … the recruitment and talent pipeline for government,' he said.
Kupor wouldn't reveal which AI companies he was most keen on using in the US government, as it's an ongoing conversation with his team.
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Other government agencies have also been using AI to be more cost-efficient, especially after the Trump administration came out with policies eliminating barriers for agencies to use the technology.
The Department of Veterans Affairs uses the tech to standardize care, while the Department of Justice uses it to analyze the drug market, according to a White House readout published in April.
3 Kupor said OPM will work with DOGE as much as it benefits the agency.
United States Office of Personnel Management
Kupor said he hopes that the OPM mindset of government efficiency transcends to other federal agencies, and that the Department of Government Efficiency was the 'catalyst' for some of the movements towards downsizing.
'To the extent that they're helpful in like the overall goals and objectives we have, then we're happy to partner with people, but we're going to ultimately make the decisions that we think are in the best interests of OPM,' Kupor said of the agency working with DOGE after Elon Musk's departure.
On AI, he said he wants 'to change the mindset here' and 'we'll see if other people across the government agree where we ought to be willing to experiment with some things in a contained area with contained risk.'