Most questions left unanswered at City Council hearing on A.I.

The threats of artificial intelligence continue to approach every aspect of our daily lives. Pictured, Councilmembers Mark Squilla, Rue Landau, and Nicholas O’Rourke of City Councils Tech Committee.

This article originally appeared in the 2BD Journal on 10/30/25. To subscribe to the journal click here.

On Wednesday, October 15, Philadelphia City Council organized business leaders and artificial intelligence researchers at PhillyCAM for a largely theoretical conversation surrounding the implementation and potential dangers of AI in Philadelphia. Led by city council’s tech committee chair Rue Landau, the stated goals of the hearing were to explore the current status of A.I. and how the city can prepare for its impact on the public and private sectors. Reactions from those in attendance however, seemingly cast doubt on the intended accomplishments.

“Is it possible that I can get a response back to you?” 

“I think we'd have to take that question back to the police department.” 

“I think we'd have to get back to you on that question. That’s probably best directed to the police department.”

Several non answers spewed from representatives for the Mayor’s Office, including Chief Legal Counsel Kristin Bray and Office of Information Technology Director Melissa Scott when pressed on the current uses and intentions of the administration. When Councilmember Landau asked directly about the Parker administration’s intentions on collaborating with the Trump administration’s efforts to use A.I. to increasingly target immigrants, audible groans erupted from the audience.

“We’ll get back to you on that question Councilmember,” said Bray.

Public hearing attendees  arrived with varied signs in disapproval of A.I. use in the city.

The more than 2-hour testimony did not offer much in tangible information. Panelists, ranging from representatives from the city to computer science researchers and healthcare executives drew up scenarios in which generative A.I. could solve backlogs. In a scenario where Chief Analytics Officer for Independence Blue Cross Ravi Chawla discussed the practical usage of A.I. in order to free up legal resources in the context of case backlogs, Councilmember Landau expressed horror at the insinuation. “We’d like to vote that that’s scary to us,” said Landau.

Panelist Clarence Okoh, senior attorney for civil rights and technology, shared testimony about how A.I. exacerbates racial bias towards black and brown folks. “In most instances particularly in the lives of low income and working class and people of color these technologies are being used to expand social inequalities rather than reduce it.” Only one week after this meeting news out of Baltimore made national headlines when a Black high school student was detained by police after the school’s A.I. algorithm flagged a bag of chips as a weapon. 

A.I.’s rapid expansion in various parts of our lives makes it clear that adequate measures are necessary to maintain control of this ever-evolving tool. In the coming weeks, as the mayoral administration carves out guidelines for the city as a whole the question that must be addressed is who is this technology going to provide safety for?