The Government Communications Service (GCS) has developed a generative AI tool named Assist to help create first drafts and review communications content.
The professional body for government communicators said the development was prompted by its 2023 Horizon Review into Responsible Innovation and the pressures on its members time, with many saying they spent large chunks on producing first drafts of their work.
It Applied Data and Insight team developed the tool to provide users with more than 50 communications-specific pre-built prompts that reflect the typical tasks a government communicator might need to on a daily basis.
These span all seven GCS disciplines and provide users with more time to spend on more creative tasks.
Draft quality outputs
“Our continuous user research into the application of Assist has found a majority of users agree that the tool provides first draft quality outputs all or most of the time,” the team said, but added that users can develop the drafts further.
They also need to complete a training course on AI for communicators before using the tool and become GCS members.
The team said that so far Assist has been used for a range of purposes, including supporting preparedness for crisis communications and helping people to reintegrated during their return to work.
