In CitCom, the interaction between companies, cities, and other public institutions is crucial. They can all bring different perspectives. The role of cities is largely to focus on the challenges that society faces and in this way contribute to qualifying technological development.
Artificial intelligence, robotics, and other digital solutions can help solve many of the challenges we face as a society. At the same time, these technologies can make our cities both greener, smarter, and more inclusive. However, digital solutions must be developed in close collaboration with users and the environments in which they will function.
"Cities are the focal point for many societal challenges - from green transition to labor shortages. That's why cities are interesting in a project like CitCom - simply because they can deliver on the challenges that companies can use for business development," says Morten Falbe-Hansen, who is project leader at Aarhus City Lab, which operates on behalf of Aarhus Municipality within CitCom.
Link between companies, research institutions, and Aarhus Municipality
Aarhus has an ambition to be a city where companies can easily test and develop green and digital solutions in close cooperation with the municipality. Therefore, Aarhus City Lab is working to create a link between companies, research institutions, students, and municipal departments so new digital solutions can be tested in a real-world environment to the benefit of both company product development and municipal core services.
"It really makes sense to have the broad collaboration provided by the CitCom project, as it is essential to involve end-users in the development of digital solutions. And that's exactly what the participation of cities in CitCom makes possible," says Morten Falbe-Hansen.
First City Challenge in CitCom.ai concluded – Bridging City Demands with innovative SME solutions
One example of how the cities can do this is the City Challenge launched by Gate 21 and WE BUILD DENMARK. That activity is bridging the gap between cutting-edge AI innovation and the practical needs of local governments. These challenges are meant to provide a structured platform for European SMEs to collaborate directly with municipalities, fostering mutual learning and solution development.
“A recent challenge in Guldborgsund Municipality was identified and used for the first open call. Here, SMEs were tasked with presenting solutions to improve insights and analysis on mobility data mapping to support urban planning,” says Morten Koed Rasmussen, Senior Project Manager at Gate21 in Denmark.
For participating SMEs, the challenge offered invaluable direct feedback from municipal staff and local experts, crucial for refining their solutions and pitches. The municipality, in turn, gained insights into the potential of AI solutions, shaping their development to address real-world constraints.
“The focus wasn't only on identifying a matching solution(s), but on building relationships, gaining new insights, and validating assumptions. This collaborative approach facilitates the practical adoption and application of AI in the public sector. Following the call, an evaluation will now begin and hopefully one or more solutions will fit the needs of the City and be offered a test,” says Morten Koed Rasmussen
CitCom.ai plans to continue these City Challenges in 2025 with EU cities, supporting municipalities and SMEs to co-create scalable, reality-driven solutions. Follow CitCom.ai LinkedIn for open calls on new City Challenges.