Munia: a generative AI designed for the tasks of Quebec municipalities
By Carange Solutions | Published on January 23, 2025
Problem and objectives
Problem
- Quebec municipalities are facing a labor shortage, which leads to an overload of work for employees.
- A large part of administrative tasks are repetitive and redundant, such as drafting documents, analyzing regulations, or managing citizen requests.
- Municipal employees must process large volumes of documentation, often complex, which takes considerable time.
- These challenges affect the productivity and job satisfaction of municipal employees.
- Law 25 Compliance: Many generative AI service providers are not compliant with Law 25, posing a major problem for municipalities. This law requires that personal data be protected, with compliant local hosting and management practices.
Objectives
- Reduce the time needed to complete repetitive tasks by 70% with an AI platform.
- Provide access to tools specifically designed for municipal needs.
- Automate administrative and documentary tasks to free up time for strategic activities.
- Améliorer la précision et l’efficacité dans la gestion des informations juridiques et administratives.
- Facilitate training and knowledge acquisition by making complex information accessible via clear summaries and instant responses.
Proposed solution
Solution
Munia platform provides access to a suite of generative AI agents designed to meet the specific challenges of Quebec municipalities. These agents optimize various administrative, legal, and strategic processes. Here are some examples:
- Executive summary generator: Quickly summarizes complex documents for fast decision-making.
- Legislation agent: Provides information on municipal laws and regulations.
- Legal advisor for general managers: Offers guidance on local legal issues.
- Structured writer for municipal resolutions: Automates the drafting of resolutions, reducing the required time.
- Tender analysis grid creator: Generates structured tools to evaluate proposals.
Munia stands out for its local roots and commitment to legal compliance, offering a secure solution tailored to Quebec realities.
- Developed and hosted in Quebec: Munia is a 100% Quebec solution, designed in compliance with local regulations.
- Hosting compliant with Law 25: The platform is hosted exclusively on servers located in Quebec, ensuring data sovereignty and compliance with new personal information protection requirements.
Principle
The platform uses generative artificial intelligence models to analyze and process natural language, allowing it to respond to requests accurately and quickly.
Users submit a question, text, or document, and the AI generates a suitable response or an actionable summary in seconds.
With its intuitive interface, municipal employees can easily interact with the AI without needing technical skills.
User experience
Users save time on repetitive tasks and receive accurate answers to their questions.
Intuitive interface allowing municipal employees, even non-technical ones, to use the platform.
Example: An employee submits a 30-page regulation and obtains a clear and concise summary in less than 5 minutes.
Role of AI
Munia redefines the way municipalities work by transforming long and tedious administrative tasks into simple and quick processes.
For example, instead of spending 3 hours drafting a resolution, the AI agent "Resolution" allows this task to be completed in just 10 minutes, generating clear and structured initial content.
This time-saving enables employees to focus on improving the quality of the final product and ensuring that documents perfectly reflect municipal needs.
By freeing up time, Munia also allows employees to dedicate their efforts to more strategic and high-value tasks, such as long-term planning, citizen engagement, or developing new policies.
By automating these processes, Munia not only enhances productivity but also elevates the quality of municipal services while reducing employee workload.
Impacts
Main outcomes
Time savings: Repetitive administrative tasks are completed 70% faster, freeing up employees for strategic activities.
Improved employee satisfaction: Less workload and more focus on high-value projects.
Error reduction: Automation ensures that analyses and documents are generated with high accuracy.
Modernization of municipal processes: The platform brings an innovative technological approach to traditional administrative tasks.
Challenges takled
Acceptance of technology by municipal employees: A special effort has been made by our team in training and support for a smooth transition.
Conditions for success
Team mobilised
A simple training on the use of the platform is sufficient to enable municipal employees to use it effectively, without requiring a dedicated internal team.
Collaborations
Partnership with pilot municipalities to test and refine the solution.
Funding received
Private funds for the initial development.
Project stages
Research and initial development
Pilot testing in a few municipalities
Adjustment based on user feedback
Official launch and ongoing support
Project stages - to come
Expansion of deployment to other Quebec municipalities.
Context of the solution
Use cases
- Daily municipal management.
- Applications in other provincial or federal administrative sectors.
Customers
- Municipalities of Quebec.
- RCMs (Regional County Municipalities) requiring centralized tools to optimize regional management.
Market opportunity
Adaptability to Other Specialized Markets: Munia, designed to meet the specific needs of Quebec municipalities, demonstrates that an AI tailored for a niche can be transferred to other sectors. For example, an adapted version could be developed for non-profit organizations (NPOs), addressing their unique challenges such as grant management, volunteer coordination, or simplified financial reporting.
Geographical Expansion: Thanks to its flexibility, Munia can also be deployed in municipalities across Canada, and even in other countries like France, where municipalities have similar administrative and legislative management needs. The platform can be adapted to the regulatory, cultural, and linguistic specifics of each region, enhancing its international potential.
Diversification of Public Sectors: Besides municipalities, Munia could integrate into other public structures, such as school boards, provincial ministries, or even parapublic organizations seeking to modernize their administrative processes.