"Smart" Cities and Due Care with Emerging Technologies

The rapid development of increasingly powerful technologies presents new opportunities to produce public benefits, as exemplified by the “Smart Cities” movement. Conversely, emerging technologies pose significant threats to public safety and individual rights, as evidenced by high-profile cyberattacks and other technology-related incidents, and in warnings issued by some Artificial Intelligence experts. This article examines the responsibilities of local governments in the United States as users of technology and as regulators of uses by other actors—arguing that they have a duty of care, traceable to the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution, to act diligently in that dual role whether or not governmental immunity would shield them from liability for breaches of such duty. Drawing on research and the author’s personal experiences with municipal initiatives and national task forces, this article offers a framework to guide well-informed, timely, and effective governance of emerging technologies.

That framework emphasizes multiple elements, including crucial contributions by institutions of higher education, to help local governments develop and implement well-balanced public-serving policies and practices regarding technology deployments.