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Franklin launches AI website assistant ‘Frankie’ to answer city questions 24/7
Summary
City staff quietly rolled out a 24/7 AI-powered web chat assistant called Frankie that answers routine questions — from pothole reporting to identifying an alderman — and escalates unanswered requests to staff by phone.
Franklin City staff introduced an AI-powered web chat assistant, “Frankie,” at the board of mayor and aldermen work session, saying the tool is now accessible from every page of the city website and can answer routine questions at any hour.
City Administrator Eric Stuckey introduced Melissa Ryerson, the staff member who presented the tool, and said the city teamed with CitiBot and used Canva assets to create a mascot. Ryerson demonstrated Frankie responding to sample queries such as how to report a pothole and how a resident can find their alderman using the city’s Who’s My Aldermen interactive map.
Ryerson said the assistant can guide users to pages such as the pothole reporting portal and the ArcGIS alderman lookup. She told the board the city performed a soft launch over the preceding weekend and staff tested the bot internally; Alderman Blanton and others asked live follow-up questions during the demonstration.
Frankie will escalate inquiries it cannot answer after a few attempts by offering a phone number for human assistance, Ryerson said. Stuckey and Ryerson emphasized the tool is intended to streamline routine requests and connect residents to existing pages and services on the city website.
Board members asked about content coverage and accuracy. Ryerson acknowledged the chat draws only on information entered for the site and noted that some events (for example, a future holiday date) had not yet been added to the dataset. The board did not take formal action; staff said the tool is live while staff continue to refine content.
