Tom Loosemore

Anyone responsible for a public service needs to start modelling how to adapt their policies and processes for the scenario when AI Agents reduce the cost to citizens of appeals, challenges, recalculations etc to near-zero.

‘Managing demand’ by making processes confusing and time-consuming will no longer work. AI Agents are relentlessly dogged.

I’m afraid you’ll need to clarify and tighten policies & processes, with all the painful political trade-offs therein.

Grey areas will be exposed and exploited, which risks reducing your ability to apply human judgment when circumstances merit. Not good. Creativity will be needed.

And these trade offs might as well be made uncomfortably transparent, because AI Agents will always dig out that 93 page PDF of guidance hidden. (Looking at you, local councils’ CTR policies).

Oh, BTW, such ‘demand management’ tactics always were deeply unethical, exclusionary and inequitable, so enough moaning. You’ve probably got a couple of years before AI Agents go mainstream.

I almost feel sorry for HMT, who have long been the biggest defenders of such ‘demand management’. Almost.