An Artificial Intelligence Lab to enhance the efficiency of Municipalities.
Thanks to our partnership with the Department of Computer Science “Giovanni degli Antoni” at the State University of Milan, we are involved in a three-year project (2022-2024) focused on innovation and digital transition in Municipalities. The project takes an interdisciplinary approach to examine the digital transition of local authorities, addressing tasks such as protecting computer systems, integrating artificial intelligence into municipal services, and effectively managing big data.
In 2023, an annual laboratory dedicated to cybersecurity in local authorities was activated, aiming to analyse the current state and identify the most common vulnerabilities. A study involving 200 Municipalities provided a representative overview of digital security needs in the area. Finally, a simulated cyberattack conducted by the University involved around twenty Municipalities, evaluating the robustness of their systems and readiness to respond to digital threats.
In 2024, the new phase of training, research, and development is dedicated to Artificial Intelligence. The laboratory includes training sessions and thematic discussions between university professors and local authorities. As part of the planned actions, AnciLab aims to experiment with solutions to improve the efficiency of Municipalities.
Info: bramati@ancilab.it
A virtual assistant to support work and organization
Since 2022, we have been investing in research and development, identifying the most suitable ground for implementing AI in our company.
The focus has been on analysing the most appropriate procedures for introducing AI, with an eye to the professional growth of our staff. We have concentrated on applying ChatGPT to one of our company procedures. After thorough analysis, it emerged that the Civil Service Management Office was one of the key sectors for this innovation.
A project for the gradual implementation of AI was developed, integrating a ChatGPT application into one of our management systems. The application, a virtual assistant, was initially made available to a selected group of users, allowing for the development of its potential during daily activities.
The assistant, developed in collaboration with our technical partner O&DS, supports the daily work of AnciLab employees and two thousand users of the service
We are fully aware that the virtual assistant needs our help to be 100% effective. The role of the “trainer” is crucial in teaching the virtual assistant to work effectively. The trainer must have logical, linguistic, psychological, and relational skills, as well as a good understanding of the processes managed by the information system. The technology has been trained on real-life scenarios to ensure accurate and appropriate responses to various contexts.
Let’s summarize the key points we started with to train the virtual assistant:
- Who trains it?
The person training the virtual assistant must understand how the technology “thinks” and what topics to train it on. Our bot trainer is not a computer scientist but has a perfect understanding of the processes managed by the system in which the assistant will be integrated. - What do we teach it?
The virtual assistant must provide information for repetitive requests: FAQs from the management system or requests for clarification/information received via email are an excellent starting point. However, this information is not sufficient: to make the tool even more efficient, we have implemented additional knowledge derived from the analysis of information flows and functionalities present in the civil service management system as well as the context. - Does it respond correctly?
The assistant is designed to simplify and speed up access to information. But if it doesn’t understand what it’s being asked, it leads to a loss of trust, creating frustration within the company and with the user, as well as dissatisfaction with the ANCI Lombardia system. We trained the assistant by creating a dedicated knowledge based on the topics it needs to handle.
Our goal is to quickly arrive at a training model and technology that can be shared with Municipalities. We share this journey with the entities interested in participating in the training laboratory organized with the Department of Computer Science “Giovanni degli Antoni” of the University of Milan
Info: zerbini@ancilab.it
A news generator to support the communication service and editorial services.
Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing Content Creation, prompting significant discussions and changes. Together with O&DS, we will experiment with solutions in this area by applying them to AnciLab’s communication actions and the editorial activities of the Strategie Amministrative magazine. As part of an experimental program, we are launching an editorial platform that offers original content generated by AI based on specific topics. The generator analyses large volumes of data, leveraging the power of algorithms and learning techniques to generate high-quality news. The news is implemented in HTML pages that can be integrated into our websites, ready for publication. We are setting up a digital editorial office to support the work of our journalists, copywriters, and communication experts; all news will be reviewed by them before publication. The benefits are manifold: the processing of personalized content is fast and in natural language, and translation into other languages is immediate.
Info: pappalardo@strategieamministrative.it
The metaverse for organizing immersive events.
We joined the Fuorisalone 2024 from April 19th to 21st. In collaboration with ADOK we organized events (twentyish) for a broad and diverse audience unfamiliar with AI and the Metaverse.
The goal was to disseminate knowledge and create widespread awareness. We will present the potential uses, potential risk points, and the impact on everyday life for citizens, workers, and society in general, of both technologies. Each event offered immersive experiences with viewers that allowed users to be transported to an environment where they can experience, in a protected and controlled environment, both mixed reality and virtual reality.