In this edition of the Intelligence Test podcast, ICF co-founder Robert Bell has a conversation with Julian Su, CEO, Cardinalrain, Grace Chao, Founder, Hearing Action Inc. and David Liu, CFO, Hoye Inc.

Local governments everywhere are racing to deploy AI in hope of improving services, communicating better and saving money. At ICF, we have seen the AI projects of Intelligent Communities grow more impressive every year. But there’s an untold story.  As a recent article put it, “an AI arms race has begun between the state and citizens, and it is not clear that the state will win.”

In the UK, local councils are responding to public frustration by developing tools that speed up housing approvals. But they are also being overwhelmed by AI-generated objections to proposed housing developments. For the low-low price of £45, the Objector AI platform will scan planning documents, draw up legal grounds for opposition and even write a speech to be read aloud at a public meeting.

In this edition of the Intelligence Test podcast, ICF co-founder Robert Bell has a conversation with Mark Tremayne, Director of Innovation & Extended Learning, Hilliard School District and David Meadows, Economic Development Director, City of Hilliard, Ohio.

In this edition of the Intelligence Test podcast, ICF co-founder Robert Bell has a conversation with Bryan Paterson, Mayor, Kingston, ON, Canada and Kelly Rowe, Fellow, Canadian Urban Institute.

In this episode of the Intelligence Test, ICF Co-Founder Robert Bell has a conversation with Xie Shu-ya, Deputy Magistrate, Yunlin County, Taiwan.

The global surge of AI has prompted industries, nations, and cities to invest vast resources in driving a new wave of innovation. In response, the New Taipei City Government will host the 2025 NTPC International Smart City Forum on Friday, August 22 at 10:00 a.m. at the Hilton Taipei Sinban. This year’s theme, “AI Empowerment: Building a Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive City,” will explore how AI innovation will shape the future of smart urban development and long-term sustainability. Attendance is by approved registration, and professionals from government, industry, and academia are encouraged to join the conversation on AI-driven innovation and sustainable transformation.

Every city or region of any size in the world would like to attract technology companies to locate there. The boom times for digitally-driven technologies seem to know no end, and diversifying into tech looks like a sound long-term strategy. But executing the strategy? Not so easy.

One of the world’s better examples comes from the city of Tallinn, capital of Estonia, a country whose journey from post-Soviet devastation to tech leadership and EU membership still astounds. A program called Test in Tallinn, led by innovation expert Mark-Emile Talivere, does what so many communities try to do, and does it very well.

In this episode of The Intelligent Community, ICF Co-Founder Lou Zacharilla moderates the conversation with Co-Founders, Robert Bell and John Jung and Executive Director, Matthew Owen.

In this episode of The Intelligent Community, ICF Co-Founder Lou Zacharilla moderates the conversation with Co-Founders, Robert Bell and John Jung and Executive Director, Matthew Owen.

There is a word you see often in news coverage of politics today. The word is “performative.”

It describes elected officials of the extreme right or left and the strange way they do politics. Instead of running for office to accomplish something, they seem to see public service as a call to express things – specifically, things that make the news. They introduce divisive laws that have no chance of passing. They ignore real crises in favor of creating imaginary ones. They label their opponents as criminals because they are too liberal or conservative, and members of their own party as traitors because they are not liberal or conservative enough. Sometimes, if these antics alarm enough other elected officials, they succeed in getting divisive laws passed. But their real goal is triggering the praise and outrage that follows.