147 PUBLIC SECTOR unintentionally – or intentionally – misusing data or behaving in a way that increases the risk of a cybersecurity breach,” says Ongena. “Microsoft evaluates all its ideas and technologies against its own internal framework and advises governments and cities to take a similar approach to protect private data and stop it being used to train public generative AI tools. Guidelines should be reviewed and updated as AI evolves.” Some governments have already established their own AI governance frameworks. Tokyo Metropolitan Government in Japan, for instance, consulted with experts and conducted a pilot study before publishing detailed, beginnerfriendly guidelines to show staff how to use its private version of ChatGPT for clerical work and handle confidential information safely. Staff must also sign a mandatory form confirming they will use ChatGPT responsibly. The Portuguese government released a similar guide when its Administrative Modernization Agency piloted an Azure OpenAI-powered virtual assistant that helps citizens navigate digital authentication services. The agency also created a ‘frequently asked questions’ database to address public concerns about the AI assistant. Deploying robust, layered security measures to further safeguard data and systems should also be a top priority for every government and city, says Ongena. He advises them to partner with experts from the private sector to ensure they have the best protection in place. “Typically, governments lack specialised cybersecurity skills and resources in-house, so they should aim to leverage the expertise of external partners instead,” he says. “Finding the right partner is easier now that governments are migrating to the cloud and everything is happening at the platform or application level because they’re no longer restricted to working with big global systems integrators. Microsoft and our global ecosystem of partners have a long history of delivering AI, cloud, cybersecurity, data sovereignty and other solutions that meet governments’ specific needs.” Public-private sector partnerships can drive greater innovation too. “In Europe, governments are taking a new approach to tendering – rather than describing the technologies they want, they’re outlining the issue they’re facing and asking applicants to suggest possible solutions,” says Ongena. “This is creating opportunities for co-innovation and sandboxing, allowing technology providers to test their new ideas and solutions in the real world.” Crucially, says Ongena, governments and cities must follow one key rule to ensure success. “Governments must place people, not technology, at the centre of smart city and AI initiatives,” he says. “This will ensure they’re developing solutions that solve real-world issues at a local level, while transforming both the employee and citizen experience, optimising their operations, saving costs and building climate-resilient urban environments.” “ Governments must place people, not technology, at the centre of smart city and AI initiatives” Photo: Unsplash/Florian Wehde
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