The Economic Development Committee of the Jerusalem Municipality, chaired by councilor Miriam Sela (of the ‘Awakening in Jerusalem’ faction), gathered last week for a meeting to mark the launch of a long-term process. The initiative focuses on adopting programs and workflows to implement artificial intelligence across the city.
The aim of the initiative is to position Jerusalem as a leading city in AI development, making it accessible to residents and helping them adapt to the changes it brings.
“Artificial intelligence touches all aspects of city life and we see it especially in the areas of service delivery and user experience,” the committee chairman opened the meeting. “AI is creating both gaps and opportunities in the labor market, impacting residents’ daily lives in ways relevant to municipal work. With this in mind, we embark on this journey and will tackle several areas that AI is transforming in the city, such as business, transportation, public health and more. We are not here to fear the phenomenon, but to understand what lies ahead and act accordingly.”
The discussion focused on the changes AI is bringing to the labor market and its impact on a wide range of professions. “Intelligence will become a commodity that can be bought and sold, and work will no longer be just a source of livelihood. A new player is coming in and saying: I am smart, efficient and cheaper, and this is challenging the value of people in the workforce. This is a factor that is reorganizing reality. For example, the share of jobs performed exclusively by humans is expected to fall from half to a third within five years,” says Efrat Bachar-Netanel, CEO of the Mosaic Institute, which investigates the impact of AI on humans. the labor market.
Bechar-Nataniel elaborated on the changes already impacting the market: “AI is expected to replace popular jobs such as office positions for accountants and clerks. Public systems are not used to retraining individuals who have earned a master’s degree and are now unable to find their place. We are already seeing a drop in placement rates at prestigious institutions like Harvard in the United States, and young people seeking job security as electricians or plumbers.”
“Change of course”
Regarding the situation in Israel, Bechar-Nataniel noted that the adoption rate of AI by companies is among the highest in the world. The high-tech sector, with a 61% corporate adoption rate, is pulling Israel up in global comparisons.
“If you examine the adoption rate of business AI geographically rather than by economic sector, Jerusalem – a city where the majority of public sector jobs are – shows a disturbing figure of just four percent. Given that more than half of public sector jobs could be improved through effective AI integration, the public sector must change course to reap the productivity benefits AI brings,” she noted.
The discussion also looked at the municipality’s current service provision through AI tools, which showed that most municipal services are gradually integrating these tools.
“In a situation where we have about 60 open service and call center positions, it is important that AI support is introduced to provide services to residents,” said Ayelet Sasson, director of the Municipal Service and Customer Experience Department at the Jerusalem Municipality.
The discussion proposed additional initiatives and strategic processes to streamline municipal work using AI, including collaboration with students and educational institutions, professional training, business support, strengthening city industry, interdepartmental collaboration and more.
The chairman of the committee concluded the discussion: “AI brings complexity – on the one hand it has the potential to narrow the gap, but on the other hand it will dramatically transform the labor market. As a local government, the government body closest to its residents, we must intervene and lead a comprehensive process. Jerusalem has all the resources to be a pioneer and leader in such a process, thanks to the fact that it is the largest city in Israel, with a strong municipality, a diverse population and opportunities to bring about change. All eyes are on Jerusalem, and from here we will translate these initiatives into a broad work plan.”
