To save money, British cities are outsourcing their services to AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) to determine when elderly people should be sent to nursing homes. The measure, announced by the Derby territorial authority (central England), has raised questions among the British public. It is planned that an algorithm, based on data from the municipality's adult social services, will generate care suggestions. Other prerogatives of the system include advising on requests for supported housing, providing care to individuals, and allocating permits or spaces for disabled drivers.

While these are merely recommendations, which an employee will be responsible for approving or not, the announcement has caused a stir among senior citizens' advocacy groups. "We're running before we've learned to walk with AI, and the elderly and vulnerable will be used as guinea pigs, with no safeguards in place," protested Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, in The Telegraph newspaper. The city of Derby intends to save 5 million pounds (5.8 million euros) in the adult social care sector, at a time when it lacks funds to strengthen its teams. For local councillor Hardyal Dhindsa, this digital innovation is a way to adapt to the funding cuts imposed by the government.

This is not an isolated case. Derby was already one of the first to set up a phone line managed by an AI assistant called "Darcie,"