Placer AI is a location analytics company and the AI stands for Analytical Intelligence. Analytical Intelligence includes academic tasks, problem-solving abilities, and abstract reasoning. Whenever you have to complete a task that requires you to compare, contrast, evaluate, analyze, or make a logical judgment, you are using analytical intelligence.
The data is acquired by Placer AI through contracts with application companies. NO PERSONAL DATA is collected. The only data that is collected is the GPS location of the cell phone. This data is then aggregated and entities may subscribe to the service. We are talking about a subscription to a data service. The comments and idea that the City of Ridgecrest is physically tracking any individual is ludicrous.
So, why is the City of Ridgecrest seeking the use of this data.?
It is fairly simple. We need data, not supposition about the existing economics of our community. Let’s run through a hypothetical scenario….
The City of Ridgecrest is currently discussing an expansion to Freedom Park which would include an inclusive playground, drainage improvements, and additional shade structures. It is our visual belief that there remains a demand and will remain a demand even after the pool is re-opened. So, we can use Placer AI to see how many cell phones traveled to the splash pad and how long they stayed, how many times did it return, etc. All we can see is if a cell phone was there and where it came from and went to.
Let’s go further, the City wants to plan a “Summer Concert” series for Freedom Park. We go out to seek artists and they ask us how many people will come, how many people will come from out of town, etc. Right now, we are answering some of those questions with our beliefs rather than facts.
Placer AI gives us the ability to examine data on the behavior patterns of our citizens before, during, and after such an event. Would it be useful to know that 10% of the attendance at Night on Balsam came from outside of the community? What if it is 20% or even 30%. If the fair brings in 15,000 people to a Saturday night fair, would it be useful to see how many of those came from out of town? Or how many stayed in a local hotel that night?
Placer AI is not about tracking individuals. All we can see is if a cell phone was there and where it was and went to. This is about using data, freely provided by cell phone users, to “compare, contrast, evaluate, analyze, or make a logical judgment” about the economic behaviors within our community.
We are not seeking to monitor what every Tom, Mike, Dick, and Harry is doing. We are looking at the mass behaviors within our community to help attract more of the events, services, and elements which raise the quality of life of our community. We are not collecting data, the data is already there, we are simply utilizing a tool to improve our community.
When man created a shovel, he didn’t continue to dig with his hands. Cell phones and applications have created an abundance of data which was not available in the past. Should we continue to guess about our economics or should we start using a shovel?
