As featured on CBC: Kitchener looks to use AI to 'deliver better service' at city hall

During a recent meeting, council learned about the benefits and dangers of AI

By: James Chaarani

Will a chatbot be replacing your city councillor? Not likely. But the City of Kitchener is thinking about how to use artificial intelligence (AI) to help improve the customer service experience at city hall.

During a special council meeting last week, councillors got a briefing on AI and how it might be implemented on a municipal level. They were also shown prototypes of its possible uses.

The session, held at Communitech Hub on Feb. 12, was co-presented by Jimmy Lin, a professor at the David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science at the University of Waterloo and a director of the Waterloo Artificial Intelligence Institute. 

During Lin's presentation, he delved into some of the dangers of AI, like possible job losses, disinformation and biases. 

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