AI has been making its way into businesses for some time now, but what about local authorities and public institutions? While the promises may seem vague and distant, some use cases are beginning to emerge. Faced with an increasing number of challenges, new solutions are appearing, including sovereign solutions that are highly relevant for these organizations.

Local authorities: entities facing numerous challenges

In recent years, public services and local authorities have been facing an increasing number of social, environmental, and economic issues. Whether supporting their citizens and staff or managing their resources, they must redouble their efforts to meet ever-growing challenges within a constrained or even restricted framework, with one goal in mind: doing more with less. 

The need for new tools to address these new issues

Faced with these new challenges, technology—and artificial intelligence in particular—has a role to play. AI is not yet being used to its full performance or potential. While it is often used for drafting speeches, its use for other tasks remains limited because its promises often seem distant or too vague.

However, it can provide valuable services to many institutions and transform their processes without compromising their core mission. 

Well-designed AI: the key to project success 

The challenge for these organizations is to integrate AI within a clear framework, using a well-designed tool that addresses real needs, particularly for time-consuming, repetitive, and low-value tasks: 

• Processing certain files 
• Answering frequently asked questions 
• Data analysis (particularly for guiding public policy)

Far from being a "gadget" or a passing trend, AI solutions can genuinely help people on the ground and lighten their workload. 

Staff can then focus on more stimulating tasks that are closer to the public, such as human interaction and local support. 

Accessible AI to facilitate adoption

Artificial intelligence must become widespread and not be limited to a few giants or the world of research. It must be: 

• Accessible, with a clear interface that can be used by an entire team
• Useful, addressing a real problem 
• Secure, particularly regarding data protection 
• Controlled, with explainable decisions 

AI agents must therefore be personalized. From large industrial companies to regional public services, every entity can have access to a solution tailored to its needs and control the entire AI lifecycle.

Beyond mere technical performance, AI must be explainable (each of its decisions can be explained and audited) as well as frugal (optimizing resources saves energy and, de facto, reduces costs). 

The importance of sovereign AI 

Sovereign AI is the key to sustainable innovation. Relying on foreign solutions means placing citizens' data outside of France, or even Europe. Furthermore, foreign AI can influence certain decisions. Digital sovereignty is therefore essential to guarantee solutions that respect public service values: transparency, fairness, and accountability.

A concrete use case: A departmental council

The goal of one of our clients (a departmental council) was to support their staff with repetitive tasks. To achieve this, we developed an AI-powered decision support tool. The positive effects are numerous: 

• Staff feel valued and are freed from certain tasks 
• The department strengthens its image of modernity and innovation 
• Productivity was boosted tenfold thanks to time savings

All this in just a few weeks and without disrupting the existing infrastructure. 

It is not about innovating for the sake of innovation, but about rethinking public service to make it more human through technology. AI does not replace; it supports. It does not decide for us; it informs our decisions. 

The challenge is significant, but the tools and, above all, the expertise are there, including within our own teams.

Are you also a public service or local authority looking to implement AI in your procedures? Contact us today to define your needs with our experts!

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