Virtual Desk and IBM have collaborated with the Municipal Transport Company (EMT) of Madrid to implement a solution based on Generative AI, with the aim of improving the user experience and promoting more connected and sustainable mobility.
The EMT manages a fleet of 2,100 buses and the Bicimad public bicycle system, transporting more than 454 million passengers per year through 227 bus lines that cover almost 4,100 kilometers. The EMT network generates numerous daily interactions with customers, who seek to resolve doubts and manage their queries. This aspect is crucial for the development of Smart Cities, where technology and innovation are key to improving connectivity and urban sustainability.
To address these needs, Virtual Desk, an IBM partner specializing in digital transformation solutions, has developed an application that uses Generative AI to transform the management of customer inquiries and requests.
“We have created this solution thinking about transportation and the people who use it every day, with their unique rhythms and needs. Collaborating with IBM and EMT on this project offers a service that truly connects with the daily life of the city,” comments Julio Martín, CEO of Virtual Desk.
Virtual Desk and IBM apply generative AI in EMT
In this first phase of the project, watsonx, IBM’s business Data and AI platform, has been used to automatically classify and manage citizen queries.
The new app automatically classifies queries, identifying whether they are related to Bicimad stations or bus lines, and suggests a standard response that EMT agents can adjust as necessary. In this way, EMT agents can resolve requests more quickly and accurately, contributing to improving urban mobility.
The platform, developed by Virtual Desk with IBM technology, allows EMT to automatically classify and manage customer queries, thus improving urban mobility
These types of solutions help transform mobility in cities and represent an example of the use of technology to face the growing challenges of urban mobility globally.
In 2015, 4 billion people lived in cities and by 2030 this number is expected to increase to 5 billion, according to United Nations estimates. This urban growth makes it essential to improve planning and mobility of inhabitants, so that cities are more sustainable, liveable, inclusive and safe, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
The EMT has highlighted the importance of the project to improve mobility in the city: “This project with IBM is an important step in our objective of optimizing and modernizing the way we interact with our clients,” explains Carlos Acha, director of Technology at EMT.
For his part, Fernando Suárez, IBM software director, emphasizes that, “by automating tasks and providing real-time analysis, we help the city of Madrid offer a more efficient public transport service in a safe and scalable framework. “Our project with EMT is an example of the power of AI to intelligently solve global challenges.”
AI at the service of urban mobility
The project improves both the user experience and the internal operations of EMT, increasing the productivity of the processes and the work of the employees. On the one hand, it facilitates greater operational efficiency by automating query management, reducing the time agents spend on repetitive tasks. On the other hand, it allows EMT to monitor queries in an agile manner, favoring the rapid resolution of problems that affect the mobility of citizens.
As a result, incident resolution time is optimized, improving the daily experience of the millions of travelers who use the municipal company’s buses and bicycles. In addition, the agents’ responses are standardized, ensuring more homogeneous and coherent attention for all citizens.
