Early findings from Maricopa County’s new AI assistant reveal resident priorities
Hannah Carl via Getty Images
Pet-related services are a leading search topic among users so far, and officials view these findings as an opportunity to foster resident engagement.
Maricopa County, Arizona, recently launched an artificial intelligence-enabled assistant on its city website, and the tool has so far revealed to city officials that their constituents have furry, four-legged priorities.
The county launched “Mari” in June, an AI-enabled chatbot that is available to users 24/7 to inform them about municipal programs and resources, Aaron Judy, chief of innovation and emerging technologies at Maricopa County, told Route Fifty. The assistant can field inquiries relating to elections and voting, public health, property ownership and court processes, among others.
Pet-related services appear to be a particular interest among early users, according to preliminary data, Judy said. Between June 8 and this week, nearly 8% of more than 12,500 questions submitted to Mari were about pet adoption and availability as of this week.
Pet adoption has been the second most searched topic since Mari became available, following property taxes and tax payments, which made up 14% of all questions, according to Judy. The third most searched topic was county jobs and job openings, totaling 3% of questions thus far.
Nationally, private and public animal shelters have experienced mounting pressure on their capacity and resources to temporarily house pets for adoption. Increasing housing and financial strains on people and families, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic and recent government shutdowns, have largely contributed to such capacity issues as people surrender their animals during economic hardships.
Animal welfare has long been a “flagship” priority for Maricopa County leadership, and its Animal Care and Control Department “strives on being a no-kill shelter,” Judy said. MCACC operates as a municipal animal shelter and agency providing broader animal welfare services.
In 2024, the department took in approximately 15,800 pets, the overwhelming majority of which were dogs, and 94% of them left MCACC care alive. The department has maintained a no-kill status, or meeting an industry standard of a 90% save rate for pets, for nearly 10 consecutive years.
Mari aims to help Maricopa County maintain those achievements and prevent further overcrowding of MCACC and other shelters by increasing access to and the sharing of pet adoption, fostering and surrendering services, Kacie Baker, geographic information officer Maricopa County, told Route Fifty. With the AI assistant, users can directly ask about specific dog breeds that are currently up for adoption, view photos and profiles of pets or request information on animals who fit personal preferences, such as being kid-friendly, she explained.
Mari was developed with IBM technology and pulls information from publicly available data provided by more than 50 county departments, including MCACC. Using a geocoding tool from Esri, the AI assistant is able to use spatial data to offer location-based responses and services based on user’s inquiries, Baker said.
While Mari’s direct impact on pet and animal services is uncertain for now, county officials are eager to monitor how the tool optimizes the pet search and adoption process for constituents and animal shelter workers, she said. Baker added that Mari can enable more resident engagement with animal welfare and broader government services by opening “up a whole new world for people to look at this stuff.”