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How San Diego built a foundation for AI at scale

10 August 2026/in Jonathan Andrews/by Folkert Leffring

San Diego is combining centralised governance, workforce training and practical deployments as it expands the use of artificial intelligence across its 13,000-strong workforce.

The city completed its AI policy and governance framework in 2024, bringing together the Department of IT, Human Resources, Office of Race and Equity, City Attorney, City Clerk, public safety, communications and performance and analytics teams.

All city employees then completed mandatory training on the policy before San Diego began deploying tools including Microsoft Copilot 365, Google Gemini and Copilot Chat in 2025.

Jonathan Behnke, CIO, City of San Diego, said rapid adoption and growing demand for more sophisticated applications led the city to establish a cross-functional AI centre of excellence.

Jonathan Behnke, CIO, City of San Diego

“We wanted to support that large volume of AI requests and minimise the risk of rogue AI across our city departments,” he told Cities Today.

The centre manages the city’s overall AI strategy, governance, standards, data enrichment, risk management, security, infrastructure, change management and financial oversight. Contracts with managed service providers have also been amended to align their work with the new structure.

An AI launchpad on the city’s intranet gives employees one place to access policies, governance information, approved solutions and training. It also includes an intake process through which departments can propose applications.

An AI governance subcommittee reviews those proposals, with 33 use cases submitted so far. The process gives the city a central route for reviewing departmental proposals while reducing the risk of uncoordinated AI use.

San Diego’s initial deployment of Microsoft Copilot 365 also underlined the importance of investing heavily in communication and training. Employees can access weekly live sessions, lunch-and-learns, office hours and guidance tailored to particular departments and functions.

“What we thought was maybe going over the top was exactly what the employees needed,” Behnke said. “Some people learn better with videos, some with hands-on workshops, some with live training and some with cheat sheets. We wanted to make sure we were providing all of those channels because everybody learns differently.”

A survey following the deployment estimated annual savings of 47,500 employee hours, equivalent to US$3.8 million in value. Most respondents said the technology improved the accuracy of their work, while most said withdrawing it would cause significant disruption after it had become part of their daily operations.

The city is now working with Google on an AI-supported procurement workflow being developed in response to California’s AB 339. Behnke said the law, which took effect on 1 January, requires government agencies to give labour organisations 45 days’ notice before certain procurements involving work performed by represented employees.

With Human Resources anticipating more than 12,000 submissions this year, the workflow is designed to help departments prepare statements of work, check submissions for compliance and allow corrections before human review. A conversational AI agent will be able to analyse submissions and identify potentially affected job classifications. The system will then support the final notification and start the 45-day review period.

Behnke sees scope to adapt the model to other processes involving submissions, departmental reviews and statutory deadlines.

The city will share its experience when it hosts the City Innovation Network (CIN) Leadership Forum North America on 9-10 September. The San Diego event will be the 61st city leadership meeting convened by the Cities Today Institute and the third regional meeting of CIN.

Behnke said discussions will cover internal efficiencies, public-facing applications, governance, executive sponsorship and securing budget support. One emerging concern is vendors’ shift from per-user licences towards consumption-based pricing, which makes future AI costs harder to forecast.

“I think it’s so beneficial for us to collaborate and exchange ideas, and learn from each other’s experiences,” he said. “I’m very excited about the September meeting.”

Main image: Sean Pavone | Dreamstime.com

Seattle sets new benchmarks with responsible AI plan

7 October 2025/in Jonathan Andrews/by admin@cityinnovation

Seattle has launched a new Responsible AI Plan and Community Innovation Hackathon Series designed to strengthen how the city governs artificial intelligence while embedding fairness, privacy, and community engagement at the centre of its approach.

The plan expands policy beyond generative tools to cover all AI solutions, establishes clear rules for prohibited and high-risk uses, and commits to hiring a dedicated AI lead who will oversee a new cross-departmental AI Governance Group.

Rob Lloyd, Seattle’s Chief Technology Officer, told Cities Today that the new approach is designed to move beyond pilots and ensure projects are aligned with the city’s most pressing priorities. He explained that proposals must now demonstrate sponsorship and value and will be closely monitored to ensure they deliver results.

Rob Lloyd, CTO, City of Seattle

“There will be initiatives where things do not produce, but the goal is to catch them early and to fail forward for future work, protecting security, privacy, and resources,” he said.

Balancing innovation with the workforce

Lloyd stressed that the city is not rushing into AI adoption without preparing employees.

“The City of Seattle began with training and upskilling before rolling out general access,” he said. “Our intent in that Fundamentals, Approaches, and Solutions structure is to support the people and change management parts of what AI is causing our employees and teams to see.”

The city is prioritising AI for tasks that often go unfinished or add strain to staff, with the goal of reducing workloads and supporting better decision-making. Employees and labour partners are helping identify areas where AI can provide the most value, from accelerating insights to addressing work that otherwise cannot be completed—all without displacing jobs.

Measuring success and engaging communities

Seattle also wants to ensure historically marginalised groups shape how AI is used. “Through participation, outreach, and engagement. It invests in positive impact in and for these communities,” he said. “And by watching the impact and adjusting based on what we see. Seattle is a national leader in our community engagement work, including through the leadership of our Department of Neighborhoods and our Innovation and Performance Office.”

The new AI Plan includes a Community Innovation Hackathon Series in partnership with AI House, bringing together students, community members, technologists, and city staff. Its first hackathon theme, “Youth Connector,” is focused on using AI tools to improve awareness and access to mental health and enrichment programmes for young people.

The city will track outcomes against key measures such as performance, reliability, adoption, scalability, return on investment, and alignment with business goals. Lloyd said these metrics, combined with stronger governance and training, will help ensure AI is deployed responsibly and with lasting impact.

Seattle was one of the first cities in the US to release a generative AI policy in April of 2023, which was then iterated and fully implemented that October. The original policy established governing principles for the city’s approach to AI including: innovation, accountability, reliability, fairness, privacy, explainability, and security.

Main image: Gregor Doerr | Dreamstime.com

Denver expands CIO role to include AI

3 October 2025/in Jonathan Andrews/by admin@cityinnovation

Denver has become one of the first US cities to formally embed artificial intelligence into its top technology leadership, with Suma Nallapati’s role expanded from Chief Information Officer to Chief AI and Information Officer.

The new title reflects the city’s ambition to be seen as the nation’s most forward-thinking AI city and to ensure that technology is deployed in ways that are equitable, secure, and centred on residents.

“Implementing AI across city government inherently presents a few risks–bias and equity, transparency and accountability, and security and data protection,” Nallapati (pictured) told Cities Today. “My strategic approach aims to mitigate these risks by diving in with eyes wide open.”

Nallapati pointed to the city’s AI Request for Proposals as a major milestone. The initiative is designed to create a pool of trusted vendors capable of delivering secure, scalable, and innovative solutions tailored to Denver’s needs.

Following a strong response, the city is now reviewing submissions against criteria such as technical strength, compliance with security standards, scalability, cost, and innovation potential. Each vendor must also complete a detailed risk assessment, which is scrutinised by Denver’s security and privacy teams.

The city’s most visible deployment so far is Sunny, a multilingual chatbot supporting residents via web, text, and WhatsApp. Between January 2024 and September 2025, Sunny engaged with more than 102,000 residents, answered nearly 100,000 questions, achieved a 90 percent satisfaction score, and absorbed 30 percent of daily 311 interactions.

“I believe AI’s success is ultimately defined by how much better it makes life for our teams and the people we serve,” Nallapati said. “With tools like Sunny, we’re tracking the number of residents engaged, our customer satisfaction score, the percentage of daily interactions that are being absorbed by Sunny that would have historically been routed through our 311 call centre, and more. And, since Sunny can recognise 72 different languages, we’re also ensuring the service is accessible and equitable for every Denverite.”

Her wider strategy focuses on transparency and collaboration with an approach to AI that is grounded in active engagement and collaboration.

“We are not just planning transparency; we are practicing it,” she said. “Last year, we successfully launched workshops to boost AI literacy among our city agency, who also contribute their expertise to policy review through our Information Governance Committee.”

Nallapati said Denver is drawing on national best practice by working with universities and foundations, including participation in the Bloomberg City Data Alliance, which is helping shape ethical guidelines and resident data initiatives. At the same time, the city is expanding its existing feedback systems so that residents can directly raise questions about AI, making public input a formal part of how new tools are deployed.

Collaboration with vendors will continue but without ceding control.

“We absolutely need the expertise of partners, but Denver will maintain control and accountability,” Nallapati said.

The city will retain 100 percent ownership of its data and will audit the algorithms, and the city’s in-house team will ensure vendor systems meet standards for ethics, transparency, explainability, data protection, and security.

Nallapati added that Denver aims to set the national pace by embedding AI across every layer of government, from data governance and policy to frontline services.

“Our mission is to seamlessly weave AI into the resident experience,” she said. “Our ultimate goal is to become the blueprint for AI-enabled cities where technology actively enhances equity and access.”

Other US cities and states that have already added, or plan to add, significant AI roles to their workforce include Louisville, New York State, Montana and New Jersey.

Image: City and County of Denver