City data is now available literally at the public’s fingertips, no data analytics skills required.

Washington, D.C. recently launched a generative AI tool trained on 2,000 open data sets, reports Jonathan Andrews for Cities Today. The beta version of DC Compass, a chatbot similar to ChatGPT, is now accessible to city staff and residents to ask data-oriented civic questions and generate maps at a keystroke.
The city worked with Esri, a giant in the geographic information systems space, on a private beta for six months to improve the software, which is powered by Esri’s cloud-based mapping and analysis platform ArcGIS Online.
“You no longer need to be a data scientist or a spreadsheet wizard to analyse DC’s vast open data catalogue,” DC’s Interim Chief Technology Officer Stephen Miller said in a press release.
The move is part of Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Artificial Intelligence Values Statement and Strategic Plan, which lays out a framework for using AI to improve the functionality, efficiency, and effectiveness of the local government
FULL STORY: Washington DC opens data to public through AI platform

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Waymo Gets Permission to Map SF’s Market Street
If allowed to operate on the traffic-restricted street, Waymo’s autonomous taxis would have a leg up over ride-hailing competitors — and counter the city’s efforts to grow bike and pedestrian on the thoroughfare.

Parklet Symposium Highlights the Success of Shared Spaces
Parklets got a boost during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the concept was translated to outdoor dining programs that offered restaurants a lifeline during the shutdown.

Federal Homelessness Agency Places Entire Staff on Leave
The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness is the only federal agency dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness.
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