Projects Active

Maricopa County Digital Storytelling

The Maricopa County Digital Storytelling project, featured on the AZ-1 web portal, highlights the impact of broadband internet access on education, business, and wellness in Maricopa County, Arizona. It shares stories of community members benefiting from having broadband access, such as telehealth and 5G technology for startups. This initiative is part of the university’s efforts…

Maricopa County Digital Twins

The digital twins for Maricopa County are crucial tools for understanding and addressing disparities in broadband access across diverse communities in Maricopa County. By creating a virtual representation of the county’s infrastructure, including broadband connectivity and accessibility, we aim to uncover data-driven insights to better serve underserved areas. Access to reliable broadband is essential for…

EDge AI – Educational AI at the Edge

Edge AI introduces a transformative AI solution to expand access to educational resources for remote and underserved communities. The project empowers learners in areas with limited internet and power infrastructure by developing an AI system capable of offline functionality on low-powered devices. The solution uses privacy-centric approaches to operate independently, ensuring user data remains secure…

City of Surprise Digital Twin

WESTMARC and the City of Surprise partnered with ASU Next Lab to create the first digital twin of the City of Surprise, targeting both investors and residents. The digital twin includes two key features: City Data View, a 3D map with real-time ArcGIS/Esri data, and Street & Ground Views, allowing users to navigate Elm Street…

Bringing Personas to Life with AI

Next Lab studio associates are using ChatGPT to create detailed user personas for testing projects to enhance partner engagement and demonstrate practical use cases. These personas are developed based on Arizona demographics and the behaviors, interests, and motivations of target audiences. The team employs a personalized storytelling approach by illustrating how these imaginary users would…