Team Name

BYD

Team Members

Project Description

KnowledgeCommons is an innovative AI-driven platform that revolutionizes civic engagement and government transparency. At its core, it utilizes Source-Backed Response technology to create a smart, searchable knowledge base from complex government documents. Unlike typical AI systems, KnowledgeCommons only generates answers based on verified documents in its knowledge base, ensuring accuracy and building trust in government information. This unique approach allows for the creation of a powerful, multifaceted platform that serves both citizens and government officials.

Core Objectives:

1. Enhance Civic Participation: Increase public engagement in democratic processes by providing easily accessible, accurate information about government services and civic responsibilities.

2. Improve Government Transparency: Create a platform that makes government information more transparent and understandable to the general public.

3. Facilitate Inclusive Access: Ensure that government services and information are accessible to all, including people with disabilities, language barriers, or limited technological access.

4. Foster Community Connection: Build a space for community discussions and shared learning to strengthen social cohesion and civic awareness.

5. Streamline Government Services: Improve the efficiency of public sector operations by providing an AI-driven knowledge base for both government employees and citizens.

6. Leverage Advanced Knowledge Representation: Utilize graph representations to excel at capturing complex semantic relationships between concepts, enabling efficient querying, preserving context, supporting multi-hop reasoning, and providing visual insights, all of which are crucial for handling the intricate interconnections typically found in government document-based knowledge.

Data Story

KnowledgeCommons: Empowering Civic Engagement through AI-Driven Knowledge Sharing

Table of Contents

• Problem Statement
• Project Overview
  • Core Objectives
• Key Features of Our Solution
• Answering to Questions from Challenges
  • AI in Governance
  • Use AI to transform bureaucratic jargon into plain English
  • Improving the Accessibility of Online Government Services
  • Connecting Communities: Your Guide to local Information and Services
  • Civic participation for a more resilient, cohesive democracy
• Potential Scenarios
  • Story 1: Streamlining Government Transitions
  • Story 2: Accessible Services for All
  • Story 3: Empowering Community Engagement
  • Story 4: Simplifying Complex Policies

Problem Statement

In an increasingly digital world, the communication bridge between citizens and government faces unprecedented challenges and opportunities. Imagine a visually impaired person trying to apply for crucial government benefits, only to get lost in a complex website; or a new immigrant struggling to understand local community engagement pathways, yet baffled by bureaucratic jargon. Add to this the rising tide of misinformation: picture a concerned citizen, bombarded by conflicting narratives about a new policy, unable to distinguish fact from fiction in the digital noise. These scenarios not only highlight the shortcomings of our current governance systems but also reveal the immense potential that technological innovation could bring. Today, we stand at the intersection of digitalization and artificial intelligence, facing a unique opportunity to reshape civic engagement, enhance government efficiency, and restore trust in public information. The challenge before us is not just about accessibility or clarity – it's about forging a new era of informed, engaged citizenship in the face of digital complexity and information overload.

Project Logo

Key Features of Our Solution

Our platform, the Knowledge Commons, offers the following features:

1. Knowledge Base Creation
2. AI-Powered Assistance
3. Source Back Response or Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
   
4. Accessibility Features
5. Language and Dialect Options
6. Infinite Explain Feature
7. Voice Input and Text-to-Speech
8. Discussion Threads
9. Location-Based Services
10. Community Backed Source
    People's feedback and how helpful of the knowledge base in solving their problems. Bridging the government and the public.
11. Human in the Loop Assistance
    When query is not available in the public service knowledge base, it will pass to human support. After the human gives a response, the response will be stored in the knowledge base.
12. Knowledge Pool
    Place to store and share knowledge bases.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Potential Scenarios | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Answering to Questions from Challenges

Navigate to:

AI in Governance

Use AI to transform bureaucratic jargon into plain English

Improving the Accessibility of Online Government Services

Connecting Communities: Your Guide to local Information and Services

Civic participation for a more resilient, cohesive democracy

AI in Governance

1. How can governments use AI to boost efficiency in public sector operations?
   
   Governments could use our Knowledge Commons platform to create more efficient and effective government services, by creating the knowledge base form of government documents and provide access to public enquiries.

2. How can AI improve transparency in government operations?
   
   Our Knowledge Commons platform enhances transparency by providing easy access to government information and always referencing sources for generated content.

3. What frameworks should be established to ensure ethical use of AI in the public sector?
   
   We implement ethical frameworks through restricted response generation based on verified knowledge bases and transparent source referencing.

4. How can governments address concerns about data privacy and security when using AI?
   
   Our system prioritizes data privacy by using local knowledge bases and not storing personal user data.

5. How can public trust be built and maintained in AI-driven government systems?
   
   Government can use this system to build up the knowledge base by carefully selecting reliable documents. During interactions, references would always be provided to the user.

6. What are the emerging trends in AI that could impact public sector efficiency and transparency?
   
   Our platform incorporates emerging trends such as RAG and AI-powered assistance to enhance efficiency and transparency.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Use AI to transform bureaucratic jargon into plain English

1. How can AI tools apply Australian Government Style Manual rules to create, edit, and review content?
   
   We create the knowledge base form Australian Government Style Manual, by using this knowledge base, the features that appearing in plain text could be checked and verified.

2. How can we ensure AI tools reliably recognize and apply Australian English spelling and conventions?
   
   We provide to user the language and dialect options, default as Australian English by prompting. In the future we may also use an Australian local LLM, Joey, for even better results.

3. How can we use retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to ensure AI-generated content is based on reliable sources?
   
   This is super important and our project is stressed on this. We restrict the response generator to only generate content based on the knowledge base and always have references from the source.

4. How can we incorporate AI accessibility features to make government content more accessible to people with disabilities?
   
   We always have the text to speech and voice input feature everywhere. We also provide an explain button which can be clicked multiple times to keep simplifying the description and explanation.

5. How can we design agentic flows to train multiple small models that can handle different aspects of the Style Manual?
   
   We will build different knowledge bases and various file services that can find the meta data in the documents to handle different aspects of the Style Manual.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Improving the Accessibility of Online Government Services

1. How can AI be applied to provide simpler, easier, and more effective access to key government services for people with a disability?
   
   We have knowledge base form of government documents and provide access to public enquiries. We have the infinite explain feature which can be clicked multiple times to keep simplifying the description and explanation, and also have the text to speech and voice input feature which can be controlled by voice even without clicking the button everywhere.

2. How can AI tools be used to provide additional support to those who care for and support people with a disability?
   
   We grab information about the guidance for how to help people with a disability and provide it to the user by establishing the corresponding knowledge base.

3. What frameworks should be established to ensure that AI applications do not disadvantage those living with a disability?
   
   Our platform incorporates universal design principles, ensuring accessibility features are built-in from the ground up, not added as an afterthought.

4. What approaches should be taken to engage with people with disabilities when designing these new systems?
   
   We allow the user to choose to interact with the component by voice or even conversation. Every input space is voice input available and every text is text to speech available.

5. How can governments build and maintain public trust in AI-driven systems that provide additional support to those living with a disability?
   
   Government can use this system to build up the knowledge base by nicely selecting reliable documents, and during the interaction of people with disabilities with the system, the reference would always be provided to the user.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Connecting Communities: Your Guide to local Information and Services

1. How can we assist local residents and visitors in easily locating local services?
   
   Current search function in the website is not useful enough, people always want to find specific service instead of an article. We build up the knowledge base from the website of local government. When user enquire a service name, response would be the url to it.

2. How can we provide answers to frequently asked questions about local services?
   
   Our AI-powered assistant can quickly retrieve and present answers to common questions from the local services knowledge base.

3. How can we create a solution that is inclusive and accommodates diverse populations, including those with language barriers, disabilities, or limited access to technology?
   
   Our platform incorporates multiple accessibility features, language options, and voice interaction to cater to diverse needs.

4. How can we leverage location awareness to offer personalized service recommendations?
   
   We will have different knowledge bases for different locations. The user can choose the location by default detection or selecting.

5. How can we develop a user-friendly solution that is scalable across local communities?
   
   Our modular knowledge base approach allows for easy scaling and customization for different communities while maintaining a consistent user interface.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Civic participation for a more resilient, cohesive democracy

1. How can we create new approaches to civics and citizenship education?
   
   Our platform offers interactive discussion threads on civic topics, allowing users to engage with educational content in a participatory manner.

2. How can we help build people's trust in government services?
   
   We build trust through transparent sourcing of information and providing easy access to accurate government information.

3. How can we increase people's understanding of government and democratic processes to increase civic participation?
   
   We have discussion threads built up for established topics around government selected knowledge base. In these threads users can ask questions and check the answers.

4. How can we increase people's use of civic infrastructure (both physical spaces and digital spaces)?
   We have the knowledge base that has the urls to the online services.

5. How can we support people to become more active in community discussions, deliberation, and community decisions?
   
   We have the discussion threads built up for established topics around government selected knowledge base.

6. How can we create opportunities for community connection and improve people's sense of belonging?
   
   By providing a platform for shared learning and discussion on local and national issues, we create virtual spaces for community connection and belonging.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]

Potential Scenarios

Story 1: Streamlining Government Transitions

Mark, a newly appointed government official, found himself overwhelmed with information as he transitioned to his new department. Facing a mountain of policies, past decisions, and ongoing projects, he turned to Knowledge Commons for help.

First, Mark accessed the department's discussion threads on Knowledge Commons. Here, he found detailed records of past decision-making processes, complete with the rationale behind each choice. This gave him invaluable context about the department's history and culture.

Next, he used the platform's AI-powered assistant to quickly generate an overview of the department's key initiatives. The assistant, using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), provided accurate summaries with references to official documents, allowing Mark to dive deeper when needed.

Recognizing the need for a new workflow in his team, Mark utilized Knowledge Commons to create a custom knowledge base. He input the team's current processes and goals, and the platform helped him organize this information into a coherent, easily accessible format.

Within a week, Mark had not only caught up on years of departmental history but also implemented new, efficient workflows. Knowledge Commons had transformed what could have been a stressful transition into a smooth, productive process.

Story 2: Accessible Services for All

Sarah, a woman with visual impairment, needed to apply for the NT Concession Scheme. Navigating government websites had always been challenging for her, but this time, she decided to try the new Knowledge Commons platform.

Using the voice input feature, Sarah asked, "How do I apply for the NT Concession Scheme?" The AI assistant, drawing from its comprehensive knowledge base, provided a clear, step-by-step guide. Sarah used the text-to-speech function to listen to the instructions carefully.

When she encountered unfamiliar terms, Sarah utilized the "Explain" button, which simplified the language further with each click. This feature ensured she fully understood the application process.

With the platform's guidance, Sarah successfully located the online application form. The Knowledge Commons' accessibility features allowed her to fill out the form using voice commands and verify her inputs through audio feedback.

Thanks to Knowledge Commons, Sarah completed her application independently, feeling empowered and included in the digital government services landscape.

Story 3: Empowering Community Engagement

Elena, a recent immigrant to Australia, was eager to engage with her local community but felt unsure about how to participate in local governance. She discovered Knowledge Commons and decided to explore its features.

Using the language option, Elena set the interface to her native language, making navigation much easier. She then used the location-based service to find information specific to her local area.

In the "Civic Participation" section, Elena found a discussion thread about an upcoming local council election. The AI assistant provided her with easy-to-understand explanations of the voting process, the roles of local councillors, and the key issues in the election.

Intrigued, Elena joined the discussion thread. She asked questions about how council decisions affect daily life, and other community members, along with the AI assistant, provided informative responses. All information was backed by references to official sources, building Elena's trust in the platform.

Encouraged by her new knowledge and the welcoming community, Elena decided to attend the next council meeting. She used Knowledge Commons to find the meeting details and even submitted a question for the public question time, all through the platform's user-friendly interface.

Through Knowledge Commons, Elena transformed from a hesitant newcomer to an engaged community member, exemplifying how the platform fosters civic participation and community connection.

Story 4: Simplifying Complex Policies

Tom, a small business owner, heard about a new government grant for sustainable practices but found the official documentation confusing. He decided to consult Knowledge Commons for clarity.

Using the search function, Tom quickly found information about the grant in the knowledge base. The AI assistant presented a summary of the key points, breaking down the complex policy into digestible chunks. When Tom encountered jargon, he used the "Explain" button, which provided progressively simpler explanations until he fully understood.

Curious about how other business owners were interpreting the policy, Tom checked the discussion threads. Here, he found a vibrant conversation among other entrepreneurs, with the AI moderator providing clarifications and references to official sources when needed.

Tom had a specific question about his eligibility. He used the voice input feature to ask, and the AI assistant, drawing from the comprehensive knowledge base, provided a detailed response with references to the exact sections of the policy document.

Feeling confident in his understanding, Tom proceeded with his grant application. He even shared his positive experience on the platform, contributing to the community backed source and helping other business owners in similar situations.

Through Knowledge Commons, a potentially missed opportunity due to complex bureaucratic language became a straightforward process, showcasing how the platform bridges the gap between government policies and citizens' understanding.

[Navigate to: Project Overview | Key Features | Challenges | Table of Contents]