AI ‘won’t live up to the hype’, warns thinktank

Governments must gain the trust of their citizens when it comes to increasing the use of artificial intelligence (AI), warns a new report. The Centre for Public Impact (CPI) thinktank, which was founded by consultant Boston Consulting Group, said that public trust in AI is low. While AI has the potential in mobility to make public transport responsive to traveller needs in real time, for example, the influence of AI is viewed negatively by some. Launching an action plan for governments at the Tallinn Digi
October 16, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Governments must gain the trust of their citizens when it comes to increasing the use of artificial intelligence (AI), warns a new report.


The Centre for Public Impact (CPI) thinktank, which was founded by consultant 4055 Boston Consulting Group, said that public trust in AI is low. While AI has the potential in mobility to make public transport responsive to traveller needs in real time, for example, the influence of AI is viewed negatively by some.

Launching an action plan for governments at the Tallinn Digital Summit in Estonia, CPI said that many governments are not adequately prepared, and are not taking the right steps to engage and inform citizens of where and how AI is being used.

Such information is vital to give AI “trust and legitimacy”, CPI believes. Programme director Danny Buerkli says: “When it comes to AI in government we either hear hype or horror; but never the reality.”

Its paper ‘How to make AI work in government and for people’ suggests that governments:

  • Understand the real needs of your users - understand their actual problems, and build systems around them (and not around some pretend problem just to use AI)
  • Focus on specific and doable tasks
  • Build AI literacy in the organisation and the public
  • Keep maintaining and improving AI systems - and adapt them to changing circumstances
  • Design for and embrace extended scrutiny - be resolutely open towards the public, your employees and other governments and organisations about what you are doing


Boston Consulting Group said that a survey of 14,000 internet users in 30 countries revealed that nearly a third (32%) of citizens are ‘strongly concerned’ that the moral and ethical issues of AI have not been resolved.

Classification & Data Collection

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Survey: Majority of UK public remains worried about global warming
    August 4, 2015
    A new survey of over 2,000 members of the public by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and ICM Unlimited has found that 57 per cent of the public are worried about global warming, with 14 per cent saying they were ‘very worried’. The poll found that 64 per cent of people think global warming is already a problem now, while 70 per cent said they think global warming will be a problem in 20 years’ time. The main issues the respondents said they were worried about were flooding and sea level rises (63
    Read More
  • C/AVs could mean cheaper roads
    October 28, 2019
    The safety benefits of C/AVs have long been promoted – but research suggests they should also contribute to cheaper roads. David Crawford investigates the potential benefits in infrastructure costs Building narrower freeway lanes to accommodate the enhanced route-tracking capabilities of connected and autonomous vehicles (C/AVs), running in platoon conditions, could result in cost savings of £0.5 million (€0.56 million or US$6.5 million) for every km of road length built. Such benefits could be secur
    Read More
  • Why do consumers buy electric cars?
    April 25, 2012
    The International Transport Forum at the OECD, an intergovernmental organisation for the transport sector that comprises 52 countries, has announced the winner of its 2011 Young Researcher of the Year Award. The Award, which is open to researchers under 35 years of age and carries a prize of US$ 7,000, goes to Canadian national Dr. Jonn Axsen of the University of California at Davis, USA.
    Read More
  • AV technology ‘could reduce congestion’, says Australian minister
    February 26, 2019
    Congestion costs would drop by more than a quarter if automated vehicles (AVs) account for 30% of kilometres travelled, says Alan Tudge, Australia’s minister for cites urban infrastructure and population. Speaking at the Australia-New Zealand Cities Symposium in Sydney, Tudge revealed findings from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics. “They estimate it would drop from $37 billion of avoidable congestion to $27 billion,” Tudge says. A 30km freeway journey in Melbourne has increas
    Read More

Highlighted Content