The push to prepare Guam for the rise of artificial intelligence is gaining momentum. This week, Artificial Intelligence Task Force members discussed everything from cyber defense to A.I. literacy as they work to develop long-term policy recommendations for the island.

The group is moving ahead with efforts to build what members call a responsible and practical A.I. framework for Guam – before the task force sunsets in two years.

Lieutenant Governor Joshua Tenorio attended this week's meeting, saying Guam must take the lead in how A.I. is integrated across the region. He said the island needs to draw from local expertise in both the public and private sectors as technology rapidly evolves, adding that collaboration is central to charting Guam's path forward.

Task Force Chair Senator Telo Taitague thanked members for staying committed, even when A.I. advances faster than policy can keep up. She said, "Nevertheless, your full engagement in this important work will ensure we build a thoughtful, responsible, and forward looking path for our island."

Subcommittees then updated members on their progress. Beatrice Santos, acting director of the Office of Technology, said her cyber security and data privacy subcommittee discussed the recent zero-day cyber threat targeting cPanel hosted websites, including some used by the Government of Guam.

"We have to start using defensive A.I.-driven vulnerability discovery and remediation tools. We can no longer do static responses because we have about a 24-hour window to try to respond to zero-day threats," she explained.

Santos said Guam must modernize its risk metrics and cyber security response strategies to better prepare for future threats.

Meanwhile, Guam Homeland Security Advisor Esther Aguigui said her subcommittee on U.S. and international A.I. policies, guidelines, and infrastructure is working to align Guam's A.I. policies with federal frameworks.

"Guam must watch two lanes at one time," she stressed. "We have to watch the U.S. federal directives and Indo-PACOM multilateral frameworks that require simultaneous compliance."

Other subcommittees focused on how A.I. could be used responsibly in government and public services.

Discussions included workflow automation, customer service chatbots, data privacy, human oversight, and the risks of algorithmic bias -- especially in healthcare.

The education and social media subcommittee, chaired by University of Guam President Dr. Anita Borja-Enriquez, also pushed for a values-based A.I. literacy framework that teaches students and workers how to verify information, protect privacy, and think critically about A.I.-generated content.

She said, "We also recommend prioritizing A.I. literacy and critical thinking. A.I. should taught to be used as a thinking partner, not as a replacement for human judgement. Students and workers need to know how to question A.I. output, verify information, protect privacy, and understand the limitation of these tools."

Task Force members also discussed A.I. ethics, deepfakes, enforcement mechanisms, and potential funding opportunities — including a possible three-million-dollar National Science Foundation grant to support A.I. readiness initiatives on Guam.

As the task force continues its work, members say the challenge will be building an A.I. framework that not only keeps pace with rapidly changing technology, but also reflects Guam's unique needs, security concerns, and values.