Council taking part in government AI trial

West Berkshire Council is one of 25 authorities selected for the trial

A council has been selected to take part in a scheme trialling the use of artificial intelligence.

West Berkshire Council is one of 25 local authorities selected to trial Minute, an AI transcription and summary tool workers can use in meetings.

It was developed by the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence, part of the Government Digital Service, which is within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Vicky Poole, portfolio holder for transformation and corporate programme, said she was "delighted" the council was part of the trial.

"If used securely and ethically, artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionise how the public sector works," she said.

The Incubator for Artificial Intelligence is responsible for prototyping and deploying AI tools for use across the public sector

It is working with the Local Government Association and other organisations to give authorities trial access to Minute, and gather evidence on public sector transcription use.

The trial will conclude in July, at which point it will publish a summary of the findings.

Ms Poole said AI would not be used to make decisions or create final versions of reports.

"Everything will be created by an officer but helped by using Minute," she said.