The original contract with ShotSpotter's parent company, SoundThinking, was never competitively bid or subject to the city’s normal procurement process. Now, the problem for Mayor Brandon Johnson is that the terms he negotiated to prevent the system from being shut down after Feb. 16 were considerably less favorable and more costly for Chicago taxpayers.
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
Business math obviously not mayor Raggedy’s strong suit.