Automating Public Services: Learning from Cancelled Systems

The project Automating Public Services: Learning from Cancelled Systems investigates why government departments and agencies in different countries are deciding to pause or cancel their use of algorithmic and automated decision support systems.

Since 2022

Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, UK

The project involves: 1) a scoping exercise to identify and list paused or cancelled systems in Europe, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States and 2) more detailed case study investigations of cancelled systems in the areas of fraud detection, policing and child welfare to better understand the rationales and factors leading officials to pause or cancel these systems. The research methods used include desk-based scoping research, document analysis as well as interviews.