Data going from one direction to the other

Open Data, Faster Than Ever: Ingolstadt Goes AI

In this ISCN Global Mixer looked at how the city of Ingolstadt managed to turbocharge their publication of Open Data through AI. Over 200 government datasets are now openly accessible there, thanks to an AI-driven approach that boosts transparency, resource efficiency, and compliance with the EU Directive on High-Value Datasets.

Event details

artificial intelligence data management & data strategies
Datetime
09.10.2025, 13:00 - 13:30
Event type
Online (virtual)
Dokumentation

Paragraphs

Key takeaways

  • Less is more when prompting: Overly detailed AI prompts often led to worse results.
  • Use AI where it adds real value – such as for generating descriptive texts, not for rule-based tasks.
  • Involve data protection and IT security experts early to prevent compliance issues later.
  • Visualizing the data process helps to identify automation potential more clearly.

How can artificial intelligence and automation help cities unlock the full potential of their public data? The Bavarian city of Ingolstadt has taken on this challenge – and delivered a practical, forward-looking solution that combines efficiency, compliance, and innovation. Altuna Saiti from the city of Ingolstadt explains how they achieved this boost to their Open Data practice.

Ingolstadt is setting new standards in open data by using AI and automation to publish statistical data faster, more efficiently, and in full compliance with EU regulations. A central theme was the importance of cross-departmental collaboration – involving the IT department, economic affairs office, statistics team, external service providers, and the operators of Bavaria’s official open data portal, "OpenByData."

Faced with limited resources, one of the project’s core achievements is the ability to generate clean, standardized datasets from a single, complex Excel file into almost 200 machine-readable datasets. These datasets include detailed information on population numbers by age, gender, and nationality, among others.

AI supports the process by generating metadata texts, while rule-based automation handles formatting and categorization. The project shows how smart use of AI, cross-departmental collaboration, and early involvement of legal and data protection teams can enable scalable, compliant open data publishing – even on a tight budget.

Today, Ingolstadt’s open data portal features a growing library of machine-readable datasets – easily accessible, transparently documented, and continuously expanding. The city’s experience proves that meaningful progress in open data is possible – even without large budgets – when strategic thinking, innovative tools, and collaboration come together.

Ingolstadt’s journey serves as a blueprint for digital transformation in the public sector: practical, replicable, and future-ready.

This event is part of the ISCN Global Mixer, a series of events organized by the International Smart Cities Network. The presentations cover a wide range of topics related to international smart city approaches and provide exciting insights into urban digitalization worldwide - in just 30 minutes.
 

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