Our kids are growing up with it, but for many adults, advancements in technology can be intimidating. As 2026 approaches, we are being told to jump in or be left behind. For the December issue of Princeton Perspectives, The Direct Impact of Technological Advances Across our Region, we take a closer look at how artificial intelligence is impacting four areas of our lives – education, healthcare, government and driving.

Are people shying away, or are they taking advantage? We went to Quakerbridge Mall and asked locals what they think about artificial intelligence (AI). Watch their responses, from skeptical to encouraging, in our Pulse of Princeton video.

Are Autonomous Vehicles Coming to New Jersey? Some legislators say this is something that needs to move forward, and it is in the works. What would be allowed? Where else is it being done? How safe is it? Read on to find answers to all of these questions and more.

Kids today are often told if they get caught using AI in school, their work will be voided, they will be punished and sometimes even expelled. But what if, instead, they were taught beneficial ways to utilize it? Our article, The New Literacy: Helping Students Think Critically in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, takes a look at how Princeton’s largest independent school is moving forward with AI.

While some offices still utilize fax machines, others are taking advantage of chatbots. In the article, Is Artificial Intelligence Improving the Way Government Works in NJ?, we share insights into different levels of government and their varying levels of AI adoption.

In healthcare, forward-thinking is what saves lives, so there are many ways the industry is attempting and using artificial intelligence. We share one aspect Penn Medicine Princeton Health is using in the article Revolutionizing Cancer Care with AI and Next Gen Medical Imaging.

As we look forward, we also look towards a safer world. From Brown University to Sydney, Australia, Perspectives Revisited shares an updated look at ways to keep the light from dimming. We also tell you about enhanced sustainability across Princeton.

It is with optimism towards the future that we close out 2025 and look forward to 2026. We thank you for joining us through another year of Princeton Perspectives.

Wishing happy holidays to those that celebrate, and a Happy New Year to all. See you next year!

Lisa Jacknow

Lisa Jacknow spent years working in national and local news in and around New York City before moving to Princeton. Working as both a TV producer and news reporter, Lisa came to this area to focus on the local news of Mercer County at WZBN-TV. In recent years, she got immersed in the Princeton community by serving leadership roles at local schools in addition to volunteering for other local non-profits. In her free time, Lisa loves to spend time with her family, play tennis, sing and play the piano. A graduate of the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, Lisa was raised just north of Boston, Massachusetts but has lived in the tri-state area since college. She is excited to be Editor and head writer for Princeton Perspectives!

Have you ever thought about being the passenger in an autonomous vehicle? Just sit back and let the car take the wheel? While there are some cars with features that handle steering and lane changes, to date, all fully commercial vehicles sold still require a human to remain attentive in the driver’s seat. It is currently not legal for any vehicle in New Jersey to be fully controlled by a computer. But that may change.

AVs IN NEW JERSEY?

A bill to establish an autonomous vehicle (AV) pilot program was introduced to the NJ Legislature by Senators Andrew Zwicker  (NJ-16) and Gordon Johnson (NJ-37) in late October. It unanimously passed through the Senate Transportation Committee with amendments, and the sponsors are currently working with stakeholders to address any concerns before it is brought before the full Senate. The NJ bill would authorize a five-year program allowing registered testers (manufacturers, universities, or fleet, automotive or technology providers) in both closed testing locations as well as on the open road. The NJ Motor Vehicle Commission would approve participation, and the pilot would be overseen by a task force.

NJ would join 35 states which already have autonomous vehicle legislation of some sort.

“Autonomous vehicles have been introduced in other states like California, Arizona, and Nevada with great success. The industry is growing rapidly, and it’s important for New Jersey to be proactive about innovation – especially if, like AVs, it’s innovation that can change the lives of everyday New Jerseyans,” explains Sen. Zwicker.

The first AV legislation dates back to 2011, when Nevada approved testing and then licensing in the same year. In other states, the laws vary from the creation of task forces to research the vehicles, to allowing pilot programs with travel on public roads. There is no state yet that allows fully automated vehicles to be sold commercially and used without restriction.

Arizona was the first to allow Waymo vehicles to travel fully autonomously around the Phoenix area as robo-taxis, with no human behind the wheel. Waymo now operates in San Francisco and Los Angeles as well, though they remain limited experiments. Uber, Aurora and Cruise self-driving cars are now also in various testing phases across the country.

With five levels of defined automation by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), most states are still hovering around Level 2, where there may be some assistance with steering or braking, but the driver is still fully responsible. Therefore, no fully automated cars are commercially available to the general public to purchase and use. But technology is advancing every day, and New Jersey wants to take advantage of it.

“Properly implemented, AVs can reduce traffic accidents and fatalities and can make transportation by car accessible to the visually impaired, physically disabled, elderly, or anyone else that cannot drive themselves,” Zwicker shared. “With an automated vehicle, these people would be able to get to school, work, doctors’ appointments, or to see friends and family. AVs could restore that autonomy and mobility to so many that feel trapped in their homes or have transportation needs that public transit isn’t able to meet.”

HEIGHTENED SAFETY

Though nationally the trend was down, NHTSA data indicates 695 people died in fatal crashes in New Jersey last year – a 14% increase over 2023. Could this number improve if computers were in control rather than humans? A fully automated system is programmed to follow all driving parameters, eliminating the variables that humans could bring such as drunk or drugged driving, distracted driving and falling asleep.

“A recent safety study found that autonomous cars were involved in 80% fewer injury-causing traffic accidents than human-operated counterparts on the same roads. Considering that traffic accidents are the second leading cause of death for children and young adults in the US, an 80% reduction in injury-causing accidents carries huge implications for public health,” Zwicker details. “In a NY Times Op-ed, neurosurgeon Jonathan Slotkin argued that even if only 30% of cars on the road were AVs, it could prevent 40% of the traffic accidents we see today. Fewer accidents mean fewer fatalities, fewer hospitalizations, less traffic, and less strain on local police departments.”

With all the potential positives, authorities remain concerned that AVs lack instinct for the unexpected and therefore are still not yet deemed safe enough for unrestricted commercial use.

INCREASED TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS

As Sen. Zwicker suggests, autonomous vehicles provide options never before available to those with disabilities that prevent them from being able to drive themselves. It has been proposed that travel opportunities could increase as much as 14% with the addition of AVs, as public transportation is useful but has many limitations.

One of the pilot programs organized with Waymo in Phoenix was for a “Mobility-on-Demand” program. The users grew increasingly comfortable over the course of the pilot program, with 59% taking more trips than they were with their traditional RideChoice program. 93% of users wanted to see the autonomous rides continue.

A study in Australia that came out in October reveals what is needed to get AVs to a level that would be the most helpful for those with disabilities. For example, it details specific design preferences. Would a more universal design make them more accessible? It also found that better education (particularly for the elderly) with regards to awareness, familiarity, and usability could be greatly beneficial.

CHANGES ON TRAFFIC FLOW

If you’ve ever driven around Princeton or down Route 1 at rush hour, you may be wondering if there are benefits for autonomous vehicles on improved traffic flow. It is hard to fully know the answer without having our roads filled with them, but research has shown there is a strong possibility for improvement. One 2023 study found that roadways containing some autonomous vehicles as well as cars with human drivers will benefit from an increase in traffic flow efficiency and at faster speeds.

While there appears to be pronounced improvements on highways where there are fewer interruptions to travel, in mixed traffic conditions the jury is still out. Some studies find things move better while others see flow suffering.

THE FUTURE IN OUR AREA

If and until legislation is passed and signed by the governor, autonomous vehicles are still barred from New Jersey roadways. Sen. Zwicker and others feel it is past time for the state to get in on the future and potential benefits it could bring.

“AVs can become a sustainable, accessible, and safe method of transportation for those who cannot or choose not to drive themselves. One day AVs will be as normal to see out on the road as a human-operated vehicle. People with disabilities that prevent them from driving will be able to travel freely and independently, injuries and deaths from traffic accidents will plummet, and daily commutes will be smoother, faster, and traffic-free.”

Last year, Pennsylvania adopted guidelines allowing for highly automated vehicles to be operated by certified users without a safety driver. This has paved the way for a Waymo pilot of robo-taxis that just started rolling out in Philadelphia. It is still in the testing phases, but hopefully in the not-too-distant future you will be able to hail a Waymo off the street.

Lisa Jacknow

Lisa Jacknow spent years working in national and local news in and around New York City before moving to Princeton. Working as both a TV producer and news reporter, Lisa came to this area to focus on the local news of Mercer County at WZBN-TV. In recent years, she got immersed in the Princeton community by serving leadership roles at local schools in addition to volunteering for other local non-profits. In her free time, Lisa loves to spend time with her family, play tennis, sing and play the piano. A graduate of the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, Lisa was raised just north of Boston, Massachusetts but has lived in the tri-state area since college. She is excited to be Editor and head writer for Princeton Perspectives!

Generative AI (artificial intelligence) is not just the wave of the future, it is the wave of today. You hear about its uses in every sector of life. Government, which ideally should aim for peak efficiency, is using AI at very different levels. The state has taken initiative to utilize it, offering increasing opportunities for agencies to incorporate it into what they do. County and municipal governments, though dabbling, still seem to have a ways to go.

MUNICIPAL USE

Princeton, for example, has barely integrated any uses of artificial intelligence into its operations and systems. The police department has explored opportunities but thus far has not found the tools available to be beneficial, especially with the additional loopholes of security protection needed for much of what they do. Ewing similarly has not shifted any core functions to AI, attempting some basic creative tasks at best, but often finding the human element is still very much essential. This seems to be the norm across New Jersey municipal governments.

“It’s not that they don’t want it, it’s that they don’t understand it just yet,” shares Mt. Arlington Mayor Mike Stanzilis, who also works as a consultant on AI implementation and integration. Stanzilis serves on the Board of New Jersey League of Municipalities (NJLM) and the NJ Conference of Mayors, and organized panels on AI at the past two NJLM conferences. He often hears municipal staff voice fears of having their jobs replaced by AI.

“Right now, no one thinks they need AI, they don’t want it and there’s no pain point. The day before the iPod came out, no one said, ‘I need a thing the size of a small cell phone that can hold 500 songs. I’m tired of carrying around CDs.’ No one had that pain, there was no pain point. Steve Jobs put that out and soon everyone needed it. Similarly, no one is saying they need an AI model, but once it becomes apparent how good this is, there will be a pain point. The early adaptors will lead the way, and other towns will want it.”

Mt. Arlington is one of those towns jumping in, having already integrated an AI chatbot into its municipal website to help locate detailed answers to residents’ inquiries quickly. It’s their AI Ambassador, as Stanzilis likes to call it, an outward-facing utilization. But there are also many internal functions of AI that can strongly assist local government, such as doing research on purchasing needs, handling OPRA requests and helping in the tax & finance departments. There, AI seeks to create efficiencies, not eliminate roles. One hurdle is that you have to be able to train the AI model on your town’s data for it to work well, and that requires security for the quantities of delicate data a municipality handles. There are large language models that exist with security features built in, but local governments must be willing to dip their toes in and try them.

“I recommend not going it alone as a town but using professionals and vendors like you would lawyers, engineers, planners. As elected leaders we have to be prudent stewards of the taxpayers’ hard-earned money. We can’t afford to experiment with their money. But in the private sector, they can afford and have to experiment to stay relevant. Look at frontier AI companies and they’ll have the great ideas we can utilize,” Stanzilis explains. “My hope is, as Mayor, to utilize these tools and then I can spend more time doing higher-level stuff. More time getting back out to residents’ needs quickly, the ones that can’t be answered by AI tools. Get out there and really be the face of the town.”

Hopewell Township has not yet fully integrated AI into its systems, but it has found interfaces like ChatGPT to be extremely helpful in reducing staff workload and streamlining efficiency.

“Communications is a big chunk of my role here, so I use it frequently! I am aware that the Business Administrator had been using it for several months to improve efficiency while there was no one in my role (prior to my starting here),” shares Fiona Lenzo, Confidential Executive Assistant to Administration at Hopewell Township. Lenzo says AI has saved her at least two hours per written press release. “The Administration Department utilizes it on a daily basis. Within the past several months, I know that some other departments have been utilizing it to assist with technology. For example, it is a great tool for learning how to use new websites, which can save time in training. The police department is potentially looking into AI technology for next year.”

By providing clearer and more timely information to its residents, Hopewell Township aims to continue and improve on its utilizations of technology while being constantly mindful to remove any sensitive details to protect the community.

Hopewell Township and Mt. Arlington are still the few across the state. By this time next year, things may be different.

“I do believe a tidal wave is coming in municipalities. In the next 2 years it will be the majority, not the minority, using it,” Stanzilis predicts. “I’m already starting to see a massive paradigm shift with government folks in a positive direction.”

COUNTY UTILIZATIONS

County governments seem to be on a similar course to their municipal cohorts. Some have delved in and are learning its benefits. Still most are reluctant or hesitant, at best.

Middlesex County has its own version of an AI Ambassador interactive chatbot. It is the first county in NJ to utilize AI in this way, supporting residents’ interactions on the county website. Its attempt at making government more approachable earned Middlesex the 2025 Service-First Award for its deployment.

Mercer County is interested, but adoption is going slowly. The capital county has begun to utilize a system called CommsCoach QA, to assist with emergency communications. As calls come in via radio or phone, they are immediately evaluated by AI. Once flagged by the system, they are further reviewed by a human, but the technology enables the team to evaluate the quality of response, identify and reinforce the strengths, document performance trends and provide actionable feedback.

STATE INCORPORATIONS OF AI

Using AI to assist with phone call analyzation is also taking place at the state level. At the ANCHOR property tax program call center, AI helps generate better menu options, enabling residents to resolve their concerns 50% more than previously.

At the state level, there is still room to utilize its full potential, but the commitment and efforts are much further along. The New Jersey Artificial Intelligence Task Force was created in October 2023 soon followed by plans for the NJ AI Hub in December 2023 (which officially opened in Princeton in March 2025). NJ AI Assistant, the AI tool used by state employees, was unveiled in July 2024. Today, more than 15,000 public employees across the state (20% of the workforce) have utilized NJ AI Assistant.

“Last year, we developed a secure AI Assistant (adapting some tools from OpenAI and Microsoft Azure) that allowed us to get a general-purpose generative AI tool into the hands of employees quickly and securely,” NJ Chief Innovation Officer Dave Cole shares. “In addition, we developed a popular training program with our partner InnovateUS, which has been taken by thousands of public professionals throughout the state. Some agencies have practically all of their employees trained. The training is now being used in dozens of states and jurisdictions nationwide.”

An impact report was released last month by the NJ Office of Innovation which shows the growth and influence such technology has had both internally and with regards to services outward for state residents. For example, AI was used to search multiple state databases and locate around 100,000 children who were eligible for summer grocery benefits but not yet receiving them.  Additionally, 65,000 businesses launched statewide through Business.NJ.gov, a site that uses AI to transform the way small business owners and entrepreneurs can get their ideas up and running.

“This report reflects that innovation is more than just trying new things — it’s about finding the most effective and efficient ways to solve real challenges,” said Cole. “That’s how we are working every day to uplift all New Jerseyans, through better government services that deliver measurable results.”

The state has been tracking how many times the AI tool is utilized, and repeatedly surveys employees on its use. The goal is for it to enhance what they are doing and improve the worker experience whether drafting internal documents, analyzing data and more.

“AI’s primary value for our state government has been to augment – not replace – the hard work our departments and agencies are doing, especially as we look to attract and retain a talented workforce. Tools like this help them focus on higher-level tasks while freeing up time to serve more New Jerseyans and to serve them better,” says Cole.

Using its successes and failures can be beneficial to others across the state as well. Last week, New Jersey was awarded a grant by the Center for Civic Futures that will enable it to further work on testing, problem solving, and sharing AI resources to improve the lives of New Jerseyans.

“We engage regularly with municipalities, nonprofits, and hubs throughout New Jersey that want to learn about our AI approaches and tools. This has included agencies focused on data and technology as well as those involved in transportation, education, and other public services,” Cole adds. “We are looking to build out more AI tools and share more in the future.”

WHAT AI CAN BE

It appears the opportunities for AI are there and growing. While we value our elected officials for the skills, time and energy they bring and appreciate all of the public employees that make things happen throughout our towns, counties and state on a daily basis, it will be interesting to see the way things transform through technology in the years to come.

Lisa Jacknow

Lisa Jacknow spent years working in national and local news in and around New York City before moving to Princeton. Working as both a TV producer and news reporter, Lisa came to this area to focus on the local news of Mercer County at WZBN-TV. In recent years, she got immersed in the Princeton community by serving leadership roles at local schools in addition to volunteering for other local non-profits. In her free time, Lisa loves to spend time with her family, play tennis, sing and play the piano. A graduate of the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, Lisa was raised just north of Boston, Massachusetts but has lived in the tri-state area since college. She is excited to be Editor and head writer for Princeton Perspectives!