NWG Innovation festival – how rural communities are using AI to maintain their water supply

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Limitless, the AI-driven gig customer service platform, has entered into a project with ‘smart video’ platform Vyntelligence, and Northumbrian Water Group, to equip members of the public in rural areas to report on faults in their water supply.

Limitless users (known as Community Rangers), who live in largely-rural areas served by Northumbrian Water Group (NWG), will be able to use Vyn’s software to take short structured videos of faults such as burst or leaking pipes in roads and homes that they become aware of, and submit them directly to NWG to flag the issue. These Rangers will then be rewarded for their effort through the Limitless app. NWG will also be able to proactively reach out to citizens near to a reported issue and ask them to attend and capture video, so NWG staff can assess the appropriate next steps.

The idea is being explored and planned in one of NWG’s annual Innovation Festival Sprints (‘A Year of Work in a Week’) between the 14th and 18th September where Limitless, Vyn, and NWG will look to kickstart the project in only a week.

NWG is the holding company for several companies in the water supply, sewerage, and wastewater industries such as Northumbrian Water Limited. The company will be able to save time and money and reduce its carbon footprint in the area by minimising the number of trips required by professional personnel.

Nigel Watson, Group CIO Northumbrian Water, commented: “We’re in our fourth year of the festival and it is always wonderful to see how we (Northumbrian Water) come together with our partners and others to produce new solutions to business problems we’ve been wrestling with for many years in some cases. We look to scale-ups as one source of fresh thinking. Over the course of the last 12 – 18 months we have really enjoyed working with Limitless and Vyntelligence. We’re really excited that they are coming together in the context of the festival to explore how we can work hand in hand with our customers to achieve better outcomes for them and us.”

Megan Neale, co-founder of Limitless, added: “This is an exciting new option for our users, which simultaneously generates extra income for them and allows them to serve and support their local community.”

Arti Khanna, Co-Founder and CTO Vyntelligence (Vyn) added: “In today’s uncertain times, businesses fight the battle to keep their people safe, manage costs and continue to respond to customer needs, we are very excited to have the opportunity to unleash the latent power of local customer communities. We are combining Limitless’s gig technology and Vyn’s unique capability, to guide residents to capture scenes as smart video and connect local people with businesses. The result is a smart community that takes an active part in resolving local issues and driving sustainable initiatives.”


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