Nobody doubts it Relevance of analyzing everything that the widespread use of artificial intelligence could bring in society, in companies and even in public administrations.
The consensus about this need is so great that no one wants to be excluded from this area of study. So, while In Europe, the adoption of a European law is being prepared This will mark the limits of its use, and at the national level – in Spain – the first state regulator around this technology has been created.
In summary, both at continental and national levels There is shared interest in defining the risks and possible uses of artificial intelligence.
In recent months, it has become apparent that the geographical scope that limits analysis of the impact of AI may be even narrower. Thus, Spanish autonomous communities such as the Autonomous Community of Valencia, Aragon, Andalusia… With the same goal, they have founded working groups or even their own agencies.
There was only one step left: that some cities would be encouraged to set up their own organization to analyze and/or monitor this technology. Well, this summer it was announced that the municipal council of Siero (a municipal entity made up of around 50,000 residents from 29 parishes – urban centers – in Asturias) will have a center with these characteristics.
The idea is Investigate, improve and promote the use of artificial intelligence techniques at local level and analyze the resulting tools with the aim of improving the quality of services that administrations offer to citizens.
This will be possible thanks to the conclusion of an agreement that… Rector of the University of Oviedo, Ignacio Villaverde, and the mayor of Siero, Ángel Garcíahave signed and will lead to the creation of the Center for Studies on the Social Impact of Artificial Intelligence (CEISIA).
The agreement with a duration of four years, It receives a financial contribution from the Siero City Council of 100,000 euros per year.
In addition, the Council of the University of Oviedo transfers the Use of the old building of the Lugones Cultural Center to locate the CEISIA there. This will be the first time that Siero will have the presence of the University of Oviedo in the community.
The functions of the new center, whose scientific team will consist of researchers from the University of Oviedo, include: Analysis, investigation and research of action suggestions based on artificial intelligence and its application in the administrative, educational, humanistic and legal-social areas.
But it will also have the function Analysis of the effects resulting from the use of artificial intelligence systems in the administrative, educational, humanistic and legal-social areasl; the application and development of artificial intelligence techniques in teaching, in the treatment of administrative language and in the cleansing or cleaning of data sources; the development of forecasting and process improvement techniques and their possible application in the field of local government; the dissemination of topics relating to the subject matter of the contract and the promotion of informative activities on the subject; and reflection on the legal and organizational guarantees that need to be put in place when using these new technologies.
Ángel García, mayor of Siero, explains: “It is one of the most exciting projects in the mandate; We in the City Council believe that the future of administrative procedures is closely linked to the possibilities of technology, especially the possibilities of artificial intelligence.”
For his part, Ignacio Villaverde shows his satisfaction with “that Participation of the University of Oviedo in these future fields” and recognizes that “we are a strategic institution that must lead the great changes that the times impose on us.”
For this reason, he thanked the Siero City Council for its commitment to the academic institution and emphasized the importance of its “local proximity”. “The Asturian University must be a decisive factor in the progress of Asturias“We therefore greatly appreciate the trust of the municipalities,” he concluded.
