The Mayor of London has launched a new Data for London Library to make it easier to use data to benefit Londoners and London and power smarter AI-enabled public services.
The platform will transform how London collects, shares and uses data to improve public services, unlock growth and create a more inclusive, sustainable city.
The platform will aim to be the definitive catalogue of place data for London, including environment, buildings, and demographics.
The library will be connecting, not collecting datasets held by key London partners including Transport for London, the Department of Health and Social Care as well as Barnet, Brent, Camden, and Redbridge councils, and the Office for National Statistics.
It will replace the previous London Datastore, which has been used to improve air quality by collating data from air quality sensors across London to help map and predict air pollution episodes; support Net Zero by providing energy efficiency data for all London homes; and tackle rough sleeping by publishing quarterly and annual CHAIN reports based on data collected by outreach teams and services across London.
Theo Blackwell MBE, chief digital officer for London, said: "London is great at collaboration and the new Data for London Library is rooted in partnership. We’ve been working closely with the data community, the London Office of Technology and Innovation, local authorities in London and other data providers in the city to prioritise the features and improve the user experience."
"This is just the beginning, we are only going one way – there is no global trend towards less data. AI systems of the future are heavily dependent on the quality and quantity of the data they are trained on, so our focus now is to build more data sources into the Data for London Library and to make it easier to navigate complex data sharing agreements to benefit the city’s strategic position as the vanguard of the data and AI revolution. This is how we can build a better, fairer, more prosperous London for everyone."
Eddie Copeland, director at the London Office of Technology & Innovation, said: "Successfully tackling many of the biggest issues we face in the capital, from climate change to tackling homelessness, depends on bringing together data from many different sources. The Data for London Library and platform will provide a huge boost for our ability to join up, analyse and act upon data at a truly London scale to benefit Londoners."
