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17 February 2022

Ai4Cities featured in EU report on AI

The AI4CIties project has been referenced in the EU's Joint Research Centre (JRC) publication "AI Watch Beyond pilots: sustainable implementation of AI in public services". AI Watch’ is an initiatives which has, among its goals, the monitoring of European Union’s industrial, technological, and research capacity in AI and the development of an analytical framework of the impact potential of AI in the public sector.  This report in particular follows a previous landscaping study and collection of European cases, which was delivered in 2020.

This document first introduces the concept of AI appropriation in government, seen as a sequence of two logically distinct phases, respectively named adoption and implementation of related technologies in public services and processes. Then, it analyses the situation of AI governance in the US and China and contrasts it to an emerging, truly European model, Next, it points out some critical challenges to AI implementation in the EU public sector. Finally, it draws a set of common actions for EU decision-makers willing to undertake the systemic approach to AI governance through a more advanced equilibrium between AI promotion and regulation.

The three main recommendations of this work include a more robust integration of AI with data policies, facing the issue of so-called “explainability of AI” (XAI), and broadening the current perspectives of both Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP) and Public Procurement of Innovation (PPI) at the service of smart AI purchasing by the EU public administration. These recommendations will represent the baseline for a generic implementation roadmap for enhancing the use and impact of AI in the European public sector.

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