Artificial intelligence (AI) has a range of uses in government. It can be used to further public policy objectives (in areas such as emergency services, health and welfare), as well as assist the public to interact with the government (through the use of virtual assistants, for example). According to the Harvard Business Review, "Applications of artificial intelligence to the public sector are broad and growing, with early experiments taking place around the world." Hila Mehr from the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University notes that AI in government is not new, with postal services using machine methods in the late 1990s to recognise handwriting on envelopes to automatically route letters. The use of AI in government comes with significant benefits, including efficiencies resulting in cost savings (for instance by reducing the number of front office staff), and reducing the opportunities for corruption. However, it also carries risks.
Uses of AI in government
The potential uses of AI in government are wide and varied, with Deloitte considering that "Cognitive technologies could eventually revolutionize every facet of government operations". Mehr suggests that six types of government problems are appropriate for AI applications:
Resource allocation - such as where administrative support is required to complete tasks more quickly. Large datasets - where these are too large for employees to work efficiently and multiple datasets could be combined to provide greater insights. Experts shortage - including where basic questions could be answered and niche issues can be learned. Predictable scenario - historical data makes the situation predictable. Procedural - repetitive tasks where inputs or outputs have a binary answer. Diverse data - where data takes a variety of forms (such as visual and linguistic) and needs to be summarised regularly.
Mehr states that "While applications of AI in government work have not kept pace with the rapid expansion of AI in the private sector, the potential use cases in the public sector mirror common applications in the private sector."
Potential and actual uses of AI in government can be divided into three broad categories: those that contribute to public policy objectives; those that assist public interactions with the government; and other uses.
Contributing to public policy objectives
There are a range of examples of where AI can contribute to public policy objectives. These include:
Receiving benefits at job loss, retirement, bereavement and child birth almost immediately, in an automated way (thus without requiring any actions from citizens at all) Social insurance service provision Classifying emergency calls based on their urgency (like the system used by the Cincinnati Fire Department in the United States) Detecting and preventing the spread of diseases Assisting public servants in making welfare payments and immigration decisions Adjudicating bail hearings Triaging health care cases Monitoring social media for public feedback on policies Monitoring social media to identify emergency situations Identifying fraudulent benefits claims Predicting a crime and recommending optimal police presence Predicting traffic congestion and car accidents Anticipating road maintenance requirements Identifying breaches of health regulations Providing personalised education to students Marking exam papers Assisting with defence and national security (see and respectively). Making symptom based health Chatbot AI Vaid for diagnosis
Assisting public interactions with government
AI can be used to assist members of the public to interact with government and access government services, for example by:
Answering questions using virtual assistants or chatbots (see below) Directing requests to the appropriate area within government Filling out forms Assisting with searching documents (e.g. IP Australia's trade mark search) Scheduling appointments
Examples of virtual assistants or chatbots being used by government include the following: