GovEx Data Points

--- Melisa Breda, former Chief Data Officer for Buenos Aires, and GovEx advisor and CDO-in-Residence, shares a candid look at what it takes to make data and AI trusted tools of government.

--- Part of our Meet the CDOs miniseries, this episode explores how the chief data officer role is evolving in the age of AI, why strong data governance remains the foundation of innovation, and how cities can move from experimentation to real impact. Melisa also highlights the growing importance of trust, transparency, and human-centered change management as governments navigate uncertainty and public perception around AI.

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--- Results for America CEO Michele Jolin and GovEx's Oliver Wise discuss how governments can use evidence, data, and cross-sector partnerships to fund solutions that improve lives and rebuild public trust.

--- In this episode of the Data Points Podcast, GovEx Executive Director Oliver Wise sits down with Michele Jolin, co-founder and CEO of Results for America, to discuss how governments at every level can use data and evidence to invest in solutions that work.

--- Michele shares how her experience in the Obama administration led to the creation of Results for America, an organization focused on helping governments fund programs proven to accelerate economic mobility and improve lives. The conversation explores the evolution of the data and evidence movement, the growing role of local governments as pragmatic problem solvers, and why demonstrating results and telling those stories is critical to rebuilding public trust in government.

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--- Beth Blauer and Oliver Wise reflect on the roots, risks, and real-world impact of building a data-first culture in government.

--- What began as a bold new idea for equipping cities with better data has become a national model for how local government leads with evidence. In this special retrospective, GovEx founder Beth Blauer joins current Executive Director Oliver Wise to share the untold stories behind the launch of GovEx, lessons from ten years in the field, and what governments must prioritize now, from data governance to community trust, to drive real impact.

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--- With support from the City Data Alliance AI Track, Luján de Cuyo embraced AI and shifted from reactive repairs to proactive service delivery.

--- Matías Meric, Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Luján de Cuyo, Argentina, discusses his experience as one of the first eight city leaders to participate in the Bloomberg Philanthropies City Data Alliance AI Track and the city’s journey from fragmented data systems to a proactive, AI-driven street maintenance strategy. The city launched a machine learning tool using cameras on garbage trucks to predict potholes, increasing detection precision and cutting manual inspection time. This conversation highlights the leadership, culture change, and commitment required to move from reacting to complaints to anticipating community needs.

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--- The AI Capacity Quiz is helping cities reflect, compare, and take confident steps forward

--- The GovEx team created the AI Capacity Quiz to help local governments understand where they stand with AI and where to go next. In this episode, Mai-Ling Garcia, Justin Elszasz, and Michael Montgomery joined the podcast to talk about how the tool came to life, what makes it different from traditional assessments, and why it’s designed to encourage cities on their AI journey.

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