Community in the Loop: Engaging Austin Residents on AI Accountability

The City of Austin is partnering with community and research organizations to help residents better understand Artificial Intelligence (AI) and shape how the City uses it responsibly. Community in the Loop is part of Austin’s Open Government Partnership (OGP) commitment to co-create an AI Accountability Framework that ensures transparency, fairness, and community trust in City-employed AI tools.

This is one of three community-based AI training and listening sessions designed to ensure Austin residents are “in the loop” as the City shapes its approach to emerging technology.

The City of Austin is developing a process to assess, monitor, and address bias, error, and misuse in AI tools used across departments. These systems influence decisions that affect residents—from service delivery to resource allocation—yet governments worldwide lack consistent standards for accountability.

Through this commitment, Austin will:

Co-create, test, and deploy a shared framework for AI accountability with City staff and community partners.

Establish procedures for evaluating AI systems before use and for reporting, investigating, and addressing bias or errors.

Build community trust by ensuring that City-employed AI tools reflect Austin’s values of equity, transparency, and inclusion.

City of Austin – Through its Open Government Partnership commitments, the City is ensuring emerging technologies serve residents ethically, equitably, and transparently.

Measure – A local nonprofit that uses data and community-based research to advance racial equity and social justice through evidence-informed policy change.

Austin AI Alliance – A network of technologists, educators, and civic innovators dedicated to advancing responsible and inclusive artificial intelligence practices across the Austin region.

Austin’s commitment to inclusive AI governance is grounded in real community leadership. Members of the Austin AI Alliance, Measure, and other civic groups were instrumental in the passage of Resolution 55, unanimously adopted by City Council in April 2025. The resolution established ethical guardrails for government AI use—prohibiting real-time surveillance and automated policing, requiring transparency, and mandating annual audits of City AI systems. Working closely with Council Pro Tem Vanessa Fuentes, these community leaders ensured the resolution reflected Austin’s values of equity, accountability, and public oversight.

By linking this civic momentum to the City’s AI Accountability Framework, Austin is reinforcing that community voice and collaboration must be central to how government adopts and governs AI—ensuring that innovation always aligns with the public good.

Join us at The Center for Government and Civic Service, ACC Rio Grande: Building 3000
1218 West Avenue, Austin, TX, United States. Parking map below. Street parking is free after 6 pm.

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