State and local governments are under pressure to deliver modern services, but budgets, staffing shortages, and long procurement cycles make innovation feel impossible. In this episode of Innovation Heroes, host Ed McNamara talks with three leaders proving that AI-powered Smart Cities aren’t a futuristic concept. They’re happening now.

SHI’s Jack Hogan and Denise Collison join NVIDIA’s Michael Sherwood to unpack how a 2,500-person mountain town deployed wildfire detection, accessibility compliance automation, traffic intelligence, and a digital AI ambassador in just four months. They reveal how SHI’s “Imagine, Experiment, Adopt” methodology helps governments move from reactive to proactive decision-making, and why interoperability, ecosystem partnerships, and accelerated AI infrastructure are reshaping what’s possible.

Key Takeaways

• How SHI helped Vail, Colorado, deploy four AI solutions in record time


• Why “start small” is the secret to unlocking Smart City momentum


• The role of NVIDIA’s full-stack AI platform in rapid prototyping


• How governments can overcome talent gaps, funding barriers, and resistance to change
  
  
  
  

Guests:

• Jack Hogan, VP of Advanced Growth Technologies, SHI


• Denise Collison, SVP of Public Sector Sales, SHI


• Michael Sherwood, Sr. Business Manager for State & Local Government, NVIDIA
  
  
  
  

This episode is sponsored by NVIDIA.



If you're facing the complexities of enterprise AI deployment and generative AI implementation, you're not alone.

As AI initiatives move from experimentation to production, CIOs and technical leaders struggle with AI infrastructure scalability, LLM model governance, and ROI validation.

Discover how SHI and NVIDIA's integrated solutions address these challenges head-on: www.shi.com/partners/nvidia