Newsom Announces Continuation of AI Government Efficiency Efforts

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced three new agreements that will expand and formalize the state’s use of generative AI (GenAI) at a press conference at the Accenture headquarters in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The projects are an expansion of the GenAI work that grew out of the governor’s 2023 executive order, which directed state agencies to study the evolving technology in an effort to improve state services and address other pressing priorities.

This most recent round of agreements centers on traffic congestion reduction, improved roadway safety and service enhancements to one of the state’s call centers, officials said at the press conference.

Newsom was joined by the state’s Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin and Government Operations Agency (GovOps) Secretary Nick Maduros, as well as representatives from Accenture and other organizations.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) began using GenAI technology from Accenture and Microsoft — specifically Azure Open AI — as one of several proofs of concept projects in May 2024. The pilot project focused on reducing traffic congestion, enhancing incident response and improving transit system reliability.

Under one of the new agreements, the department will continue to use the technology to analyze real-time and historical data to “predict traffic bottlenecks, detect incidents faster, and identify locations for safety enhancements,” a press release from the governor’s office reads.

Caltrans will also be using Deloitte’s Gemini GenAI to improve roadway safety, a continuation of earlier proof of concept work. Early efforts used the technology to analyze roadway injury and fatality data to identify patterns and potential remedies. This new agreement will expand on the data sets with the goal of evaluating safety upgrades prior to real-world implementation.

“California is a global leader in GenAI innovation, and the signing of these contracts provides the state an essential tool to help solve some of our most pressing transportation challenges,” Omishakin said in the press release.

The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA), meanwhile, will be continuing its pilot project that used Anthropic’s Claude GenAI tool to allow call center workers to quickly access the more than 16,000 pages of tax-related reference materials during customer calls and live chats. That project was conducted with the help of SymSoft Solutions.

“California is demonstrating that GenAI can help us improve the way we do business for Californians,” CDTFA Director Trista Gonzalez said in the release. “This project will serve as a proof point moving forward to see if we can scale this technology across state government call centers.”

During the press conference, Newsom highlighted these efforts as useful attempts to streamline and enhance government efficiency, joking that they might get more attention if he announced them wearing sunglasses and wielding a chainsaw — a clear shot at Elon Musk and the controversial work done through the federal Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Newsom went on to say the technology has the potential to close the divide between leaders in the state and their constituents, referencing the work done in Taiwan to create a more responsive government.

More information about the state’s GenAI work can be found here.