The lecture showed why cities end up with a “pilot graveyard” and how to turn them into living laboratories with real results. The key is accountability, measurable goals, and working with residents, not one-off hackathons. Examples from Helsinki and other cities suggest that small steps go further than big promises.
From a pilot graveyard to living laboratories
Many municipalities have drawers full of ideas and pilots, yet projects often end at the “showcase” stage with no continuation. The reason is usually a lack of ownership, a clearly accountable person, and metrics by which to decide what comes next. A living laboratory (living lab) differs from a pilot in that it engages users, has defined KPIs, and ends with a transparent decision: scale, adjust, or stop. In Helsinki, for example, they did not scale a promising transport solution because the vendor did not find a sustainable business model—and it is precisely such a firm “no” that saves cities time and money.
An advantage of a living lab is also financial restraint and focus on a single, concrete problem. Instead of a “big” project, a series of small steps with measurable benefits is chosen. A typical example is the digitization of building permitting: not just a nice front end, but also the internal processing of submissions, where AI helps triage routine steps and a human makes the final decision. This approach shortens processing times while keeping quality under control.
Helsinki: planning, engaging people, and mobility
In one of the new districts, planned since 2009 and built since 2012, they involved approximately 2,500 people in testing. Modern services were tried there, including self-service health screenings with indicators that led to prevention or a recommendation to see a doctor. During the long construction period, they designed detours in advance, introduced public transport first, and built a large bridge reserved for pedestrians and cyclists. Their motto is “an extra hour”—time gained by spending less time in traffic jams and walking more or using public transport.
In central Helsinki today, according to observations, roughly 90% of people get around on foot or by public transport; cars are the minority and the streets feel calm. The city also communicates with residents during construction and installs temporary greenery and places to relax, so the neighborhood is pleasant to live in even along the way. Step by step, with explanation and measurement, sustainable change is achieved. It is also important that pedestrian and public transport links were addressed before the development itself.
How to set up projects with AI and smart solutions
Failures often stem from the lack of an owner and feedback: one city, for example, procured a chatbot, but for a year no one monitored its data or the quality of its answers. Without accountability and metrics, success cannot be assessed. With AI, it also applies that privacy must be protected and a “human check” must be in place—a person who makes the final decision. A living laboratory provides a safe framework in which these principles can be verified before wider deployment.
The process is straightforward: identify the problem, set KPIs, designate a responsible person and partners, break the work into smaller iterations with a clear timeline, and measure continuously. At the end, arrive at a decision—end, adjust, or scale—and set the next step accordingly. Experience from multiple living laboratories in our region confirms that process discipline and a focus on the user beat fashionable technology shopping. Less “everything at once,” more meaningful, evidence-backed steps.
