Tainan City Government officially launched its AI Development Project on December 3. Mayor Huang Wei-che, Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Greater China Region Alain Crozier, General Manager of Microsoft Taiwan Ken Sun, and Linker Networks Founder Paul Shieh, announced the project will focus on two main areas: setting up a AI development platform to create job opportunities, and cultivate AI professionals to enhance digital competitiveness. The objective is to transform Tainan into an AI development base for talent cultivation, technical R&D, and field testing. This will link industries together and help local businesses enter the international market.
The Mayor expressed that AI is not just a fancy term thrown around anymore . The technology will be implemented in our daily lives to make our lives more convenient, government agencies more efficient , and learning easier. Take transportation services as an example. AI technology can assist drivers in find parking spaces faster and plan better driving routes. In medical services, AI can help local Public Health Bureaus and doctors understand the overall health status in the area and notice potential disease outbreaks faster. In education, smart teaching and learning gadgets can assist teachers in the classroom and help students learn better.
Huang stressed that while Tainan is an old city, it welcomes the latest technology with enthusiasm.
The Tainan City Government AI Development Project marks the first collaboration between Microsoft, its global strategic partner Linker Networks, and a local government. The project will introduce AI auto-labeling technology into the government system. In addition, Linker Networks Founder Paul Shieh announced the company with be recruiting employees and training AI professionals in Tainan to further connect local AI professionals with related technology and industries. City council members Ingay Tali, Cai Wang-quan, Shen Zhen-dong, Shen Jia-feng, and Cai Xiao-wei were also present at today’s press conference.
Alain Crozier, Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Greater China Region, expressed that Microsoft has worked closely with many Taiwanese government agencies to set up AI plans. Within six months, they have successfully developed the AI 100 Plan and created over hundreds of AI solutions. Microsoft Taiwan is very grateful to Tainan City Government for their strong support and assistance and hopes that the government can continue to promote the implementation of AI in daily life and industries so that businesses and the general public can all enjoy the benefits of AI.
Ken Sun, General Manager of Microsoft Taiwan, said it was a pleasure to work with Tainan City Government. The collaboration will set up a smart platform on which more AI technologies can be developed in Tainan and eventually enter the global market.
Linker Networks Founder Paul Shieh mentioned that he plans to use auto-labeling technology to generate the most important AI training data in Tainan, and this will bring limitless value to the entire industry chain. If AI can be combined with data security and 5G, Tainan can become a world-leading AI center.
The Research, Development, and Evaluation Commission remarked that the collaboration between Tainan City Government, Microsoft, and Linker Networks is in line with the central government's “small country big strategy” approach to AI development policies in major cities. Through promoting local AI developments, cultivating AI professionals, and facilitating industrial transformation in Tainan, RDEC hopes that Tainan will become the first smart city to implement AI auto-labeling in city governance.