- How Lower Saxony's largest cities are using AI
The ten most populous cities in Lower Saxony predominantly use Artificial Intelligence (AI) in administration. This was found in a survey by the German Press Agency. Hannover, Braunschweig, Oldenburg, Osnabrück, Wolfsburg, Hildesheim, and Lüneburg already use AI or have concrete plans to do so. Göttingen, Salzgitter, and Delmenhorst are not yet at this stage.
Against the backdrop of increasing skills shortages and the workload in town halls, the Association of Municipalities in Lower Saxony sees AI as a key theme. "Many of our members are still at the beginning of the process and are exploring the use of such technology," said a spokesperson.
Improving citizen service with chatbots
Intelligent chatbots in administration are becoming increasingly popular to reduce necessary telephone inquiries, according to the Association of Municipalities. They are intended to provide quick searches for responsibilities, procedures for official acts, and explanations of legal projects. Such a chatbot is currently being developed in the state capital.
In Osnabrück, there is already a chatbot named Toni in citizen communication; one is planned for Hildesheim. Oldenburg is working with an informatics institute on an application assistant that guides users through the process of filling out forms. In Braunschweig, a virtual assistant summarizes texts, writes drafts, and provides information.
AI in road and bridge construction
AI is being used in various areas in Lower Saxony. Recently, the technology has been used in Lüneburg's road and bridge construction: the condition of roads is recorded via smartphone, and damages are analyzed using an algorithm.
For Wolfsburg, AI has been "of great importance for some time," said Mayor Dennis Weilmann (CDU). As part of administrative modernization, the city is developing a strategy to regulate the targeted use of AI technologies in various areas of administration.
Major challenges
In Göttingen, AI is not "being productively used in the current sense of the debate," the city said. It is also not used in the city administration in Delmenhorst. Similarly, in Salzgitter, but the city is in close exchange with neighboring municipalities. "The major challenge for the city of Salzgitter is to accompany the development and not to overlook the organizational and data protection measures," said Mayor Jan Erik Bohling.
In the context of administrative modernization, Hildesheim is planning to implement an intelligent chatbot, similar to the one already in use in Osnabrück with a chatbot named Toni. With increasing skills shortages and workload in town halls, many Lower Saxony cities, including Hildesheim, are exploring the use of AI to improve citizen services.
