Specialized Urban Planning Chatbot: A Participatory Approach for Evaluating Efficiency

Abstract

This research investigates the use of a specialized Chatbot tool in the field of urban planning as a participatory approach and how efficient it is in handling concerns related to this domain. This specialized urban Chabot was prepared during an exhibition at the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka in 2023. We argue that specialized chat-bots, which are trained on a dataset including text and code, exclusively involved in urban planning, have the potential to offer more pertinent and useful insights and suggestions compared to conventional chat-bots. It is also suggested that a transition from standard Chatbots to specialized urban Chatbots is essential because AI (Artificial Intelligence) Chatbots possess the capability to comprehend and address a broader spectrum of inquiries and prompts while also exhibiting the capacity to acquire knowledge and adjust their responses over time. Accordingly, we developed a special urban planning Chatbot and tested the results with the general public from different fields. The findings of our study indicate that almost 65% of the total respondents have emphasized the suitability of this application for planning purposes and its importance in the future. The majority of respondents also highlighted the use of specialized Chatbots, designed for urban planning would be beneficial for city planners. Citizens may use them as a means to collect input, suggest prospective solutions to urban planning challenges, and formulate design briefs for upcoming urban development initiatives. The use of Chatbots in the field of urban planning displays considerable potential for study, and we anticipate that our findings will catalyze further advancements in this domain.