Tampere Leads a Europe-Wide Project on the Governance and Promotion of Artificial Intelligence

The Interreg Europe-funded AI4Citizens project, spearheaded by the City of Tampere, concentrates on the opportunities and challenges of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the public sector, alongside six other partners. Along with Tampere, representatives from Helsinki, Amsterdam, Riga, Bacau, Bucharest, and Piedmont are participating in the project. The project will span four years in total.

AI presents significant opportunities to develop and improve public sector services and increase administrative efficiency. However, the risks and challenges for both local and regional administrations must be acknowledged, addressed, and mitigated. These challenges may relate to security, ethics, trust, and regulations. Cities and other administrative areas play a crucial role in ensuring that the entire society is engaged in this transformation.

In the AI4Citizens project, partners will learn from each other's best practices and develop new solutions through interregional exchange of information, learning, and co-development. The project aims to assist local and regional decision-makers in improving and creating different models and rules for AI. It will also ensure and enhance the safe and ethical use of AI in the public sector. Learning from each other is central to the project team. Through cooperation, cities and regions can achieve more and develop innovative ways to use AI. The interregional learning process is based on AI governance models and their key elements, from both challenges and opportunities perspectives.

The project's opening seminar and first learning visit, held in Tampere, laid the groundwork for interregional cooperation and the learning process. During the visit, partners were introduced to the impacts of the European Union's AI regulation (AI Act) from the public sector's perspective. Additionally, Tampere's cooperation partners presented their viewpoints and use cases of AI.

- The first meeting exceeded our expectations in many ways, says Aino-Maija Vaskelainen, Project Lead for the City of Tampere.

- The learning visit in Tampere was primarily about establishing a solid foundation for future cooperation. It was great to get to know all the cities involved, discuss common themes, and learn about the different AI initiatives undertaken by various cities. The main goal of this project is to combine different experiments, experiences, and regional priorities into a coherent whole. Learning from others will be the greatest benefit of this project - it's wonderful that we can engage in this kind of cooperation. AI is such a broad, complex, and significant topic that no single city can handle everything on their own.

Following the opening seminar and learning visit in Tampere, the project will continue in the autumn with learning visits to Bacau and Piedmont. Meanwhile, the City of Tampere will continue working on and developing its own AI governance model.

More information about the progress of the project can be found on the project's website:

• AI4Citizens-project