The use of locally-generated public data for artificial intelligence (AI) machine learning could deliver new revenue streams for local and regional governments, says a policy paper which looks at the opportunities and challenges of AI and cities.
The use of artificial intelligence in cities paper, produced by the Geneva-based Global Cities Hub, says that local governments generate hundreds of petabytes of data from which advanced machine-learning solutions can be derived. And by combining digital twin technology with AI-enabled algorithms and urban operational mechanisms, it offers the opportunity to leap straight to a future-proof urban upgrading.
“Not all cities might have the necessary means to develop the capacity of collecting, processing and using the amount of data they sit on,” Andras Szorenyi (pictured), author of the policy paper, told Cities Today. “But all of them must have the reflex to keep the control and allow other actors to exploit it only when they contribute to the public mission and enhance the quality of life of citizens.”
The paper looks at where AI can best serve local governments, and gives an overview of the guiding principles that ensure AI’s ethical use. It argues that local and regional governments should be able to feed their needs and expectations into global processes for AI regulation.
“On the one hand, local governments who want to deliver better public services and increase the well-being of their residents need to deploy AI in ways that meet real needs and advance their own local mission,” Szorenyi added. “On the other hand, relevant international organisations should formally and actively involve them in an institutionalised manner in AI-related global decision-making processes, because cities are the ones implementing most of the international instruments on the ground.”
Existing best references for cities include:
- The UNSG’s High-Level Advisory Board on AI maps the governance landscape and proposes policy and institutional options.
- UN-Habitat’s white paper ‘AI & Cities’ promotes a people-centred approach to AI and community engagement.
- The OECD Principles on Artificial Intelligence provide guidance for responsible stewardship of liable AI.
- The Council of Europe Framework convention on Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law is the first legal framework that covers AI systems throughout their lifecycles.
- And the EU’s Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI emphasise human-centric AI that respects fundamental rights, ethical principles, and societal values.
“Various multilateral initiatives seek to regulate AI, such as its ethical use in general or its use in smart cities in particular,” said Szorenyi. “While most of these processes are traditionally intergovernmental, Global Cities Hub aims to open up the right space for local and regional governments to make their voice heard directly or indirectly.”
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