In order to address the growing challenges of urbanization, major metropolitan hotspots around the world have started their transition into becoming smart cities. Simply put, a smart city is a framework that aims to use information and communication technologies to create, develop, and promote sustainable development practices. Data from Facts and Factors notes that smart cities are becoming more prevalent today, and the market for smart cities is expected to reach around $297.7 billion by 2026.
Smart cities aren’t a new concept with Austin, Singapore, London, and Barcelona all being recognized for their smart capabilities. Verizon Connects highlights that the innovative technologies used in smart cities are increasingly necessary in order to manage swelling populations and the growing congestion. Technologies that you may see in a smart city are cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
In this post, let’s discuss a particular technology that’s now making its rounds in smart cities: conversational AI.
What is conversational AI?
The technology behind automated messaging and speech-enabled applications that generate human-like interactions is conversational AI. This type of AI can communicate like a fully-realized person by understanding intent, recognizing text and speech, copying human conversation habits, and absorbing different languages. One such example of conversational AI is chatbots, which is an AI software that can simulate a natural conversation with humans through websites, messaging programs, or mobile apps.
What benefits can conversational AI provide to smart cities?
Answer common questions from citizens
Those who live in smart cities often have tons of questions as the environment they live in continually adapts and evolves for the better. However, manually answering the queries of citizens can be a tedious task, and usually, not enough exhaustive information is provided by those who are in charge. Through conversational AI programs, citizens can initiate a dialogue via the internet, in writing, or verbally. The conversational AI software then exhausts all available information to properly answer a question and give enough context to satisfy the citizen’s queries.
Increase the efficiency of government processes
Exploring the Problem Space points out that government agencies are highly encumbered by bureaucratic inefficiency — and smart cities aren’t exempt from this. One key reason why government processes remain inefficient is due to their slow and excessively complex rules. In turn, this forces bureaucrats to focus more on the process than the outcome. Through conversational AI, government processes will be more efficient as virtual assistants can replace frontend workers and find the most streamlined way to complete a certain procedure.
Personalize government services
In the eCommerce and finance world, conversational AI as a service is being used to study consumers. This helps companies create customized suggestions and products that they think their individual consumers will like. The same can be applied to smart cities. With conversational AI, smart city officials can study the behavior of their citizens and give personalized recommendations on services that might interest them. Moreover, smart cities can also better anticipate the needs of their citizens if they use the data gathered by conversational AI solutions.
Smart cities should start deploying conversational AI apps if they want to provide superior and efficient bureaucratic services to their citizens. For more AI and machine learning insights, feel free to visit our blog here at Dasha.
