“What [is] unique about this partnership between Dublin City Council and ADAPT is that ADAPT is leading research centre in artificial intelligence and human computer interaction, bringing technical academic expertise and bringing that with public services enhances the work.” – Khizer Ahmed Biyabani
ADAPT Radio’s latest episode examines how local governments can adopt generative AI responsibly while maintaining public trust and data security as new EU AI Act rules introduce mandatory AI literacy training for staff. The discussion focuses on a partnership between Dublin City Council and the ADAPT Centre at Trinity College Dublin that is translating academic research into practical ethical tools for public services.
Khizer Ahmed Biyabani, a 2025 Digital Transformation Rising IT Star winner, and Richie Shakespeare, assistant staff officer at Dublin City Council, explain how Ireland’s first local government generative AI Lab is addressing ethical risks through controlled experimentation. One example is a retrieval based model that analyses council meeting minutes using tightly defined datasets to avoid hallucinations and inaccurate outputs. The lab operates across four pillars covering governance, staff education, proof of concept development and enterprise level scaling to ensure a structured and compliant approach.
The episode also highlights how this work sits within a wider culture of innovation at Dublin City Council, including smart gully life buoy monitoring sensors that reduce manual checks and free staff to focus on higher value tasks. Interim guidance aligned with national AI strategy and the EU AI Act has already been shared internally, with learnings being exchanged with other local authorities in Ireland and across Europe facing similar challenges in data governance, process optimisation and future public facing digital services.
Listen to the episode on Spotify, Soundcloud or wherever you get your podcasts.
